When You Love A Witch
by Asilanna Dark-witch
Summary: If you loved someone, how far would you go for them? Toad has to face some choices he never thought he'd have to make, but will it even be worth it?
1. Chapter 1

There was a knock on his door that startled him. It could have been due to the fact that it was an actual _knock_ as opposed to some other blatant disregard to his privacy, but that wasn't it. _It was her_. He knew it. Why she would come to HIS door, he didn't know. Maybe he had just imagined it. Right when he had convinced himself that it wasn't real, he heard her tentative tapping from the other side of his door again, right before it opened.

"Toad?" Wanda asked as she entered. Todd sat up in his bed, but didn't offer up any of the pet names he'd given her out of sheer surprise at her presence here. She was HERE, in his room…..WILLINGLY. Before he could even process that thought she had one knee on either side of him and pushed him up against the wall behind his bed.

"Wanda?" he finally asked as her face grew near to his. This wasn't like her at all. She's be more willing to hex the hell outta him before touch him. What was going on? She shook her head as a reply, and grew even nearer. Like a ton of bricks, it all hit him, just like it had before: That sweetly spiced aroma that hung about her like an intoxicating drug, making his brain numb to any logic. The sound of her breathing, her heart, perfectly matching his as they raced in unison. Slowly she closed the gap between them, pushing her soft red lips against his which made something inside him feel like it was imploding. It was perfect, just like at that lodge up in the mountains, only this time she knew it was him. That made it even better.

He felt rather than observed her pulling the black buttons of her red top apart to slide it to the floor. She choose to sit back then, still wearing a black lacey bra, and looked deeply into his eyes. He didn't dare say one word, for fear of ruining the moment. Instead he waited for her to talk, and he didn't have to wait long.

"Tell me what I need to hear Toad," she asked him gently, pulling her hands away from behind his neck before he could even respond. "I need to hear you say it."

"I love you Wanda," he replied fervently and without hesitation. "You know I do. Everyone knows I do. I love you more than anything or anyone in this world." But she was shaking her head and pulling away. "Wait, don't go," he begged, putting a hand out as she retreated, leaving everything behind, even her shirt. "Why?" he managed to ask, just as she put her hand on the handle to exit. She paused there, and looked over her shoulder at him.

"You know why. It's not enough. It's never been enough. And it never will be. So stop dreaming."

With a jolt I woke up from my dream, sitting up in the same room that had been the main scene just moment before. Wanda wasn't there, and she never had been. With a long sigh I put a hand to my head and closed my eyes as I laid back down.

"Still dreamin' 'bout her?" a soft voice asked from my right, closest to the wall. It didn't startle me, I knew she was there.

"It had been so long, yo. Why now? I thought I was getting' better. 'N they almost never come when I'm with you." I felt her hand slide across my chest and embrace the shoulder farthest away from her in a kind of hug.

"I'm sorry Slick," Tabby whispered to me as she kissed my check. I opened my eyes to her blue ones, full of sadness.

"I didn't mean to wake you up or anything, yo. I'm sorry if I-" but she stopped me by shaking her head.

"I was already up. I gotta get back before anyone notices that I never came home." I looked to the window at the top of my wall, right near the base of the house, and saw that it was still dark out.

"What time is it?" I asked her while stretching, and she smiled gently at me before easing herself over me and off the bed.

"'Bout 5 am. Go back to sleep, 'n I'll see ya at school." She gave me another quick kiss after she'd quickly dressed and headed for the door.

"Hey Tabbs?" I called after her sleepily.

"Hm?"

"Do you still have dreams about him?" She stopped all movement for a while, but didn't look back. In a voice so quiet that no one else would have herd it, she replied.

"All the time." Then with that she squeezed herself outta the door and on her way back to the X mansion.

Tabby and I had kinda been thrown together through chance or something like that, not sure what I'd call it. Neither of us ever woulda thought that we woulda ended up here. It was just one party that Kitty threw at the mansion when the opportunity arose. I don't know why Lance talked me into going, I guess because he didn't wanna be alone. After ten seconds there, he ditched me to drool over Kitty, who wasn't even giving him the time of day at that point. She was too busy gawking over Blue Boy. After one eyeful of that, I grabbed a drink and went outside to sit on the porch. I wasn't alone long.

The door busted open and almost cracked me in the head, but Tabby didn't notice; she was _pissed_. She had an entire bottle in one hand and an empty cup in the other, and totally ignored me as she plopped herself down, ripped the top off the bottle and poured. It was only after her second glass that she offered me a drink. I wasn't totally stupid, I knew what had happened. Almost everyone knew that she was in love with that jackass Nightcrawler, and with Kitty all over him like I'd seen seconds ago, I could only guess that Kurt wasn't exactly smitten over Tabitha.

After a couple of cups each, we were talking about how stupid love triangles were, and how much it sucked to be on the wrong end of one, like both of us were. We were both in love with people who would never give us a second glance. In a drunken stupor she had opened up and told me just about everything that had transpired between her and Kurt, how it ended and how much she still loved him. In return I told her about my deep abiding feelings for Wanda, and how she hated me so much that it hurt. Literally. There was our first…well everything. Started with a kiss, but ended up as much much more. I thought it'd only be a one-night stand that she'd regret the instant she sobered up, but somehow we bonded. A mutual agreement was made, to use each other to replace the person whom we really wanted, as a way to numb the pain of being alone, unwanted and broken.

I was dwelling on this memory as the sun continued to rise, and I knew there was no way I could go back to sleep. Might as well get up and actually be on time to school. Hey a first time for everything, right? I didn't even know why I kept going. Maybe it was for Tabby. Originally it was to see Wanda, even if only for a second during passing period, but recently she had disappeared. She used to disappear a lot like this before she had her memories swapped out, but ever since Magneto messed with them to make them a "happy family" she'd been stationary. That is, until recently. I had no idea where she was going, or why. Just that she was gone.

After getting ready, actually eating breakfast (definitely unusual for me), and heading out I realized that I still had lots of time before school started and I didn't wanna be seen hanging around early. People might get the wrong idea, ya know? So I hopped into a large tree that was a few feet from the school entrance and stretched out, leaning back against the trunk comfortably out of sight. I closed my eyes and let my hearing tell me everything I needed to. So what if I had a few extra mutant tricks up my sleeve that the Brotherhood didn't know? Sue me. A guy has ta keep SOME secrets, right?

It was through listening that I knew what was coming. "Ya gotta be KIDDIN' me, yo!" I mumbled under my breath, and opened my eyes. Here he was walking up like a fuckin' prince or something, his arm around Kitty's neck like he owned her, and her beaming up at him like he was her only reason for living. This guy made me sick. Even his accent disgusted me. I know it's not fair to him, it's not HIS fault that he's the main reason everything's fucked up. I mean think about it: If he wasn't in Kitty's life, then Kitty would be with Lance, like I could tell he so needed her to be. Then Tabby would be with her little boy blue, and she'd be happy. And me? Well, there was no hope for me any way you looked at it. But at least Lance and Tabbs would be happy. And it was Nightcrawler's fault for choosing the wrong girl. I couldn't help myself, I HAD to mess with him. I didn't care if Tabby'd give me hell for it later. Some things in life are necessary.

Like lightning, my tongue shot out the exact 11 feet and 4 inches that I knew would be needed to snagging his "watch" before I pulled it back, prize and all, and watched his furry blue self be revealed.

"Toad, you slimy vorm, give me my inducer back!" he yelled as he hunkered down and looked around to make sure that we were alone. I just laughed and stayed hidden.

"Watcha gonna do for it, Blue Boy? Hide behind your pet cat?"

"Like, ugh Toad you're so gross. Stop sliming all over everything and just, like, give it back, ok?" Kitty shot at me, which made me laugh even harder.

"Yeah, 'cause I'm _sooooooo_ scared of you, Kitty. Even your name shows how useless you are, yo!"

"And what about me?" asked an older female voice as I was lifted against my will from the tree and brought to hover above Nightcrawler. "Give him his stuff back, Toad, and don't bother him again," Jean demanded and I frowned at her.

"I thought you couldn't be showing off your mutant powers in the open like this. Especially you, Ginger. You have a lot to lose, yo."

"We don't take kindly to threats, especially from the likes of you," chimed in a cold voice from Scott.

"Of course you'd be comin' to your girlfriend's rescue. None of you c'n ever fight on your own, yo. Cowards." Jean chose to drop me then. Hard.

"Toad, why don't ya jus' give it back? You're not doin' yahself any good," drawled Rouge who was leaning against the side of the building, her arms were crossed and one foot pushed against the brick. She'd been hanging out too much with Gambit it seemed, and was picking up some of his traits. I just grinned at her, and I swear I saw a ghost of a smile on her lips too. Since Rogue was more Tabby's friend than anyone elses, and had a certain disdain for Kitty, that usually put her closer to me than any of the other X-geek were. It was her request that finally pushed me through.

"Ah fine. You ain't worth my time anyways, yo," I told them all, and tossed Night-creeper's induced back at him before hopping off. Tabbs was gonna chew me up and spit me back out for harassing not only her beloved Kurt, but half of her team as well. Speaking of which, where was _she_? Those losers usually traveled in a pack, and these days Tabby ran with them. Shouldn't she have been there?

For just a heartbeat, I felt something. If Tabby skipped town, for whatever reason, I would miss her. A lot. What the hell? Ah Fuck. I might actually care about that fire ball.

* * *

><p>A HUGE thank you to mouseagent, Moonphase 9, pointyearsrule, DarkRoguePhantom and others for the reviews! Without you, I wouldn't have had the ass kicking that I needed in order to get writing again. Sorry I've been so lazy! I'll try to make up for it. :) Again, thank you so much! Input is very much appreciated!<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

I went through the rest of the day, with no sight of Tabitha. I even went to a class or two, thinking that maybe she was mad at me for ditching. Not like _she_ could say anything about that, her attendance almost rivaled mine. I decided to head home early, mostly because neither Tabby nor Wanda choose to be at school, so why should I? But also to avoid Duncan and his hostility towards me. I stopped just short the door to my room, tilting my head to one side as I let my advanced hearing bring me the information I wouldn't have caught otherwise.

A pulse, a heart beat that was sped up just slightly, and shallow breathing. It was her scent that tipped me off, but why would Tabby be anxious, and why was she in my room? Tentatively I pushed open the door, and Tabby's head snapped up. She saw sitting on my bed with her legs dangling off as she kicked them back and forth with anticipation.

"Tabbs?" I asked, confused at her behavior. She shouldn't be worried about seeing me or being in my room. We had gotten to the point that the two of us were completely comfortable in each other's presence. I saw her bite her lip, then pat my bed beside her, beckoning me over. I did as she asked, sitting to her right with a puzzled look on my face. "Is everything ok?" I asked her. She didn't answer for a while, and when she did, she wouldn't look me in the eye.

"Toad. If you could, I mean like if it came up, and you had a chance, if Kurt really needed your help, would you do it? I mean would you help him?"

"I don't-" I started to say, not seeing where this was going, but Tabby shook her head.

"Would you?" she insisted. I thought about it. Sure, I disliked him for upsetting the balance in Lance's and Tabby's life, but that really wasn't his fault. He and I had our differences and, never would I admit this out loud or anything but, I thought he was kinda maybe a good person. And I knew Tabby loved him, and she was my closest, and possibly only, friend.

"Depends on what he needed. I mean I wouldn't kill Lance or anythin', yo. That's not right." Tabby shook her head.

"No, not like that. Just something to help Kurt. If you knew he really needed it. Would you help him?" She seemed so intense, so intent on my answer that it almost scared me. I thought a minute more before answering.

"Well, yeah I guess. Don't go tellin' him or anythin', yo. I'd do it for you, not him." Tabby let out a breath I hadn't know that she'd been holding. "Now what's goin' on?" She was silent again, but was biting her lip and her hands were fidgeting with each other. "Tabbs, you know that you c'n tell me anything." Her wide, scared blue eyes locked onto my golden ones then, searching for something. She looked so vulnerable, so worried that it just about broke my heart. One of my hands slipped into hers and squeezed. With one last sigh, she looked away and it all came out in a rush.

"She's known that something was wrong, and it's been bothering her for a long time now, through nightmares and this terrible feeling that she described. She knew something was wrong, but didn't know what. She tried asking the Brotherhood, but the others were under strict orders not to tell her. They didn't say anything, but she knew they were hiding something. She came to Jean, to try and figure out if Jean could bring the answer out of her thoughts and well Jean said no, I mean the whole team would totally freak if they ever found out that she got help from one of us. Maybe the professor would be ok with it, but the others would never forgive her. So Jean turned her down, but I was there, I mean I overheard it all. I followed her out and she knew I was there, confronted me once we were outside of the mansion. I told her I could help, and well. I did. It was the right thing to do, wasn't it?" Tabby was out of breath by now, and had been squeezing my hand so hard through the duration that I now couldn't feel it, but that didn't matter to me.

"What do you mean, Tabby?" I asked, surprised at how calm my voice sounded when there was panic erupting in my head. "What happened to Wanda?" Tabby took a few deep breaths before continuing.

"I knew a guy, back from when I would do jobs with my dad. He could mess with people's minds really well. I'm not sure if he is a mutant, or a human that's really good at what he does, but it really doesn't matter. He could help people that had seen us forget things, and I figured if he could help people forget, he could help people remember. I didn't want to tell her myself. You know her temper, and I knew that she wouldn't believe me. I took her to this guy…and it worked. She got everything back. She remembers everything." A cold numbness fell over me then, freezing my thoughts.

"Where is Wanda? Tabitha, where is she?" Tabby turned to look at me, since I never called her by her full name. Her chin was wobbling, but she was fierce. She would stick to her guns no matter what, and we both knew it. She clenched her jaw and met my eyes squarely.

"Where do you think? She went after Magneto." Those four words turned my already frigid world to complete ice. At one point I noticed I was standing, facing the wall but I couldn't feel the movement it took to do so. It was those four words that echoed again and again and again through my mind, each time chipping at my fragile frozen mind.

She went after Magneto.

Slowly, a heat was bubbling up inside of me, attempting to burn through the sculpture that I had become. My heart which I was sure had stopped beating was now choking my throat, trying to suffocate me. My stomach had dropped through what felt like and endless abyss, and there was no getting it back.

She went after Magneto.

The churning I felt inside stirred up more of the heat that was attempting to burst through my frozen mind. The warmth wasn't a good one, like Tabby usually gave me. It was uncomfortable and burning the ice away quickly, leaving me agitated. My chest now felt like it was getting crushed in a trash compactor, and I was getting light headed.

She went after Magneto. _Wanda_ went after Magneto. Wanda. MY Wanda. Suddenly I knew what the ice that melted was; panic and fear. And I knew what the growing heat was. Anger, fueled by pure terror that I would lose her. Wanda was going to face her father, arguably one of the most powerful mutants in the world, and I knew she would be out for blood. She wouldn't let him get away with this one, one of them was going to die.

"Where?" I croaked to Tabby, my voice raspy as I placed my head against the wall and closed my eyes as the palm that was on the same wall above my head clenched into a fist.

"I…I don't know." I knew I shouldn't be angry with Tabby, she was trying to help. Wanda deserved to know the truth. But by doing so, Tabby had just thrown the object of all my affections, all my desires, right onto death's door with nothing more than a temper and her own chaos-based witchcraft to aid her. Magneto had his whole team of Acolytes at his beck and call, and God only knew what else. I knew I shouldn't be mad at Tabby, but I had to do something with this fire that was attempting to consume me. Then, just like that, the final frozen glass pane of ice inside me shattered, and it became crystal clear to me. Everything clicked into place, and just like that I had a plan.

"I'm going to need your help. Not only yours, but Rogue's as well." My voice was deadly calm and low, which would have surprised me if I had cared at all at that point. "Get Rogue to touch Wolverine for as long as she can without hurting either of them. I'll find you when this is done. We'll also need a mode of transportation. The faster the better. Can you do this?" There was no reply from her, so I opened my eyes and turned to look at her. She was looking scared again, but this time not of me, but for me.

"What're you doing Toad?" she asked.

"Going after Wanda, or whatever's left of her."

* * *

><p>I left Tabby with her orders as I sought out the one person I knew of that would help me find Wanda, or wherever she had been last.<p>

"You asssssked to meet?" he slurred as his pale form slithered from the shadows.

"Caliban." He nodded in acknowledgement. "Wanda Maximoff," I told him, and his eyes widened.

"Why issss it that you sssseak the Sssscarlet Witch?" he asked, which caused my own eyes to narrow.

"It's none of your business, now tell me where she is!" Caliban had no response to this, and he remained silent. I locked eyes with him for a long time, but he only stared listlessly back at me, waiting. Finally I dropped my gaze and relaxed my shoulders. "Because….well, 'cause I love her, 'n I think…I think she's in trouble." This seemed to satisfy him, and he gave me the coordinates. As I turned to leave, he put a hand on my shoulder.

"Be careful what you wisssssh for, little frog. The Witch isssss not to be trifled with." I couldn't help it. A cocky grin slipped onto my face, and in an amused voice I answered him the only way I knew how.

"Don't I know it, yo." He also gave me directions to find Tabby and Rouge, who were at the point that overlooked Bayville. I made my way there as fast as I could, and found Tabby lounging across the hood of Lance's rig, with Rogue sitting shotgun.

"There you are!" Tabby shouted and jumped off, but I shook my head and leapt in the backseat before she could take another step.

"No time, head North," I told them, but Rogue whipped around.

"Ah am NOT 'bout ta let you drag mah ass right ta Magneto's doorstep without a plan! Now tell me what's goin' on, or I'm not takin' one more step in any direction ya so deep ahpropriate." I sighed and motioned for Tabby to get in the car.

"I'll explain on the way, but we really don't have time for this, yo. Can we go now? Don't mean to be dramatic or nothin', but it really is life or death."


	3. Chapter 3

I let Tabby drive, since that was the closest to Mach speed that we could ever get. Even so, it seemed like forever before we reached the unpopulated forest. From there it was only a few miles before we saw the large silver dome that Caliban had promised would house Wanda. Or had housed her not long ago. As we approached it, Tabby killed the engine and we continued on foot. As soon as we got close, I realized I made a major mistake. It was a very thick, very solid metal wall: No way in. How could I have over looked this? Wasn't this what happened last time, and I had to beg Nightcrawler's help? How had I forgotten? Just as I was feeling despair, I heard something behind me. Rogue was looking warily at Tabby, who gave her a questioning look.

"Look, don't hate me ok? I was jus' thinkin' ahead," Rogue said. I wondered what she meant, but I didn't even have time to question it before a blue arm dangled a watch in front of me.

"Von't you need this, Toad? Or do you plan on saving her looking like _that_?"

"What're you doing here?" I demanded of him, and he slid down off the branch he had his tail wrapped around and landed on his feet in front of me. I was glaring at him and he was sneering at me when Rogue put a gloved hand on my arm.

"Look, ah asked him ta follow us 'cause I thought sumthin' like this would show up, ok? He's here ta help." I looked over Nightcrawler doubtfully. Why would he ever help me? But then I looked at Rogue and realized he _wasn't_ here for me, but as a favor to his half sister. I dropped my eyes from his and shrugged.

"We're wasting time, yo. Can we just get in there already?"

"Hey, a little thanks vould be nice you know," Kurt told me, and I shrugged one shoulder.

"Waddaya want, a gift basket? C'mon, yo. Time is precious." Kurt shook his head and disappeared, only to come back an instant later to tell us the coast was clear. One by one he teleported us across the metal barrier and into its depths, which were dimly lit. Luckily Nightcrawler had better night vision than the rest of us, and was able to see a lot more than I could.

"Zer is a hallway that is to the left, I think that vould be our best chance," he reported and we all decided to take it. My nerves were buzzing, just waiting for any of Magneto's men to show up and cause trouble. I was especially wary of the Cajun. He was a quiet one, and made me look over my shoulder ever few seconds just thinking about him sneaking up on us. There was a loud clash somewhere behind us that had the four of us jumping out of our skin.

"Let's jus' find her 'n get outta here," Rogue commented softly, sharp eyes taking in everything around us. We all agreed and hurried on. After several more feet, I started seeing familiar markings. Hex marks decorated the walls, and all the lamps had exploded down the next corridor.

"This way," I told them, and Nightcrawler took the lead with me right behind him. We made our way as fast as possible while still keeping a low profile, since we didn't want to attract any attention to ourselves if we didn't have to. As we moved on, the air became darker and filled with smoke, and soon even Nightcrawler wasn't able to see much. "Let me," I told him, putting myself in front of him.

"Ja what are you doing to do, slime your way through the darkness?" Nightcrawler asked, but I ignored him and closed my eyes, focusing on everything that I could hear. Drip, drip off to the right. A broken water line that had emptied all of its contents. Not that way then, it would just be a mini swimming pool. A small but distinct humming from in front of me, with a small snap every few seconds; a busted power line. I'd rather _not _get fried today, so not that way. Slowly I lead our small rescue party to the left, with my eyes closed and my ears picking up every small noise to determine what lay ahead. After hearing various signs of which way to go, or not go, we ended up in a very large, echoing cavern that felt empty to me. All I could hear were the heart beats and breathing rates of those behind me, but I strained myself to pick up more. There!

_Thump….thump thump…. Thump._

A VERY light heartbeat lay at the center of the darkness, and the breathing was extremely shallow, and so labored I knew the person it belonged to didn't have a lot of time.

"Stay here," I said quietly and moved forward slowly at first, trying to bring more information to my senses. The sting of smoke had been tainting my sense of smell ever since it blocked Nightcrawler's view, but I tried to push that aside. After taking a few more steps, my eyes widened in recognition. That sweetly spiced scent that sent my heart racing and my head reeling. _Wanda_. I ran to her side and felt my way around for her hand. When I found it, she felt cold and clammy which scared me. "Wanda? Wanda!" I called, which brought the others over soon enough.

"Is she….?" Tabby asked

"She's alive. But barely. Nightcrawler, get us outta here," I called, but before Nightcrawler could move, something else intervened.

"I believe that I'm not supposed ta allow dat ta happen," he said, his smooth Cajun accent filling the air. Why hadn't I heard him before? I didn't have long to think about it. Gambit was advancing on us quickly, but his boots made next to no noise.

"Kurt, get her outta here," I said as I stood and moved myself in front of them. Nightcrawler crouched down to touch her, but Gambit was faster. A fist full of glowing rocks headed our way, and I could only get three slimed before the rest exploded, tossing Kurt far to the left and Tabby with him, while I lay over Wanda. I had no idea where Rogue was, but I didn't have long to wonder.

"Remy!" she called from in front of me. "Knock it off!" I blinked, blind to what was happening. Again I had to close my eyes to get any idea of what was going on. Rogue stood a few feet directly in front of me in a fighting stance, heels digging into the ground, as Remy slowly advanced.

"Cherie, you shouldn't be here," he crooned at her softly, and stopped in front of her. I could hear the leather of her gloves chafe as she clenched her fists tightly.

"You have no right ta be tellin' me where I can 'n can't be, _Remy Lebeau_." It seemed as if they had a fight recently. This couldn't be good. Gambit just sighed, and I heard his staff twirl once before he placed it in the dirt and leaned his weight against it.

"C'mon now Anna, can't ya jus' let dis one go? I can't fight you when we're fightin'. Takes all the fun outta it." I could hear the cocky grin in his voice, and that apparently bothered Rogue. I heard her put her hand behind her back as she continued talking, to hide from him the fact that she was slipping one of her gloves off.

"Well then ah guess today is your lucky day, 'cause it ain't gonna be muchova fight." With that she brought her ungloved hand up towards his face, but Remy caught it by the wrist. He was _fast_! I heard him utter a tisking noise.

"Now that's playin' dirty Cherie, 'n you know it." I heard him shift his weight forward to lean into Rogue. "Not dat I'm condemnin' it, mind you. I kinda like it when you play dirty." It was about there that I realized Wanda didn't have time for this. I had to get her out _now_, without any further delay. Tabby had made her way back over to us by then, dragging Nightcrawler with her. He seemed to be unconscious, and I would have believed it if it weren't for his elevated heart rate. He was faking.

I slipped my hand into Tabby's, and made several circles on her palm. She got the message, and put her hands together. I opened my eyes as her hands began to glow, and was able to see what gave Remy his edge. He was wearing night vision goggles, which were now locked onto Tabby and her activity. He didn't have time to react before she threw close to a dozen of her mini bombs at him, forcing him to doge away from Rogue. As he did that, Nightcrawler's hand reached out and grabbed my ankle and Wanda's wrist as Tabby grabbed a hold of him and I shot my tongue out to grab Rogue's wrist and yanked her into our collective group so Nightcrawler could _poof_ us outta there. We ended up outside, at the exact spot we had entered.

"We can't stay here," Tabby said and Kurt nodded in agreement. Within second we were piled on the hood of Lance's rig, and Tabby was sliding in the driver's seat. Rogue jumped in the back, then helped me pull Wanda in just was Kurt jumped into shotgun.

"Gun it!" I shouted, and Tabby didn't need any more prompting. Moments later we were flying out of the forest and screeching onto the highway. "You think we lost him?" I asked Rogue, and she looked dubious, but shrugged. We both knew that if he had really wanted us, we'd all be dead or in some other terrible situation at this point. "Pull over as soon as you think it's safe," I told Tabby.

"Zer!" shouted Kurt, pointing at an alcove in the cliffside just big enough to hide the jeep from sight. Boom Boom pulled us into it, giving the wall a slight tap with the passenger side of the jeep before turning it off. I looked down at Wanda, and felt my chest constrict.

She was one big, bloody mess from head to toe, not one inch of her seemed unscathed. Several broken bones, multiple wounds that were still slowly oozing her blood out of them, and a head wound that looked ferocious. Gingerly I got up and eased her out of the car with me. Rogue jumped out to join me while Tabby and Kurt stayed in the car.

"How're we gonna do this with her unconscious?" Rogue asked me. I didn't answer. Instead I slid one of my hands at the base of Wanda's skull and gently lifted her head up.

"Wanda, I know you can hear me. Right now it's lookin' pretty bad, yo. I know you put up one hell of a fight, but I need you ta be strong for jus' a little bit longer. Wanda, wake up. We need your help. Help us help you." She didn't reply, not in any manner. My other hand went down to take hers, and there was no response. Suddenly I was a lot more desperate for a miracle than I was moments ago.

"I have an idea," Rogue said, sliding her glove off.

"No, you can't, she'll die if you take any more form her," I said, but Rogue locked her eyes on me.

"'N she'll die if I don't! Toad, we have one shot at this, 'n that window is closin' fast." I thought a few seconds about it, and realized that she was right. I had to put my trust in Rogue, and hope that she knew what she was doing, and pray that she could work two different mutant's powers at the same time. The original plan was to get Wanda to manipulate her ability to steal a mutant's power and tweak it just slightly so that she could use those powers herself. By getting Rogue to use her power to take Logan's regenerative abilities, it enabled Rogue to have them. Thus if Wanda could change up a hex a bit, she could use those healing powers on herself. But since Wanda was out cold and unresponsive, Rogue had thought of an alternative: Touch Wanda, take her powers then use them to take Logan's mutant ability out of her and give it to Wanda. Already I could see this going so very wrong in my head.

Rogue pressed the tips of her thumb and forefinger to Wanda's skin, then inhaled deeply as she was flooded with her powers. Rogue allowed only a few seconds of contact to pass, afraid of how much energy she could take from Wanda in this already fragile state. When she pulled back she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.

"Rogue?" I asked, and she nodded and held up a finger while scrunching her eyebrows together. "You ok?" I asked, and again she nodded.

"Yeah, yeah I'll be fine. Jus' wasn't ready for the thoughts she has screamin' in her head, is all." I could tell she was trying hard to sort things quickly, and finally she blinked her eyes open. Still she looked a little muddled, but was able to focus on the task at hand. Her eyes locked on Wanda, and her hands started to glow blue with a hex, which then enveloped the witch. I saw her jaw clench as she worked hard to focus Wanda's chaos magic, which would be a feat in and of itself but she also had to manipulate it to move Wolverine's powers from herself to Wanda. She was wobbling a bit, so a blue hand reached out to steady her.

Rogue took strength from having the support of her half brother and closed her eyes again, this time to truly focus on what she was doing. It seemed to take forever, and all we could see from the outside was the glowing of Rogue's hands and Wanda's body. Seconds felt like hours as they ticked by, and we all held our breath as we waited to see what would happen. Rogue gritted her teeth as the task grew harder and I felt my heart hammering. What if something went wrong? What if Rogue couldn't handle Wanda's powers? What if Wanda's magic couldn't be used in this way, and my idea was flawed from the start? What if Rogue couldn't focus on doing two things with two different powers at once? What would happen if it failed right in the middle of the spell?

As my thoughts grew darker and darker, I kept my eyes on the two of them; hoping, believing and praying that this would work. Finally, after what could only be described as an eternity, Rogue dropped her hands and the blue faded. She swayed heavily, and her eyes fluttered. Luckily Nightcrawler was there to take her weight and catch her before she toppled over.

"Rogue?" I asked, and she stayed conscious just long enough to give me a nod. Then she passed out cold, and my eyes went to Wanda.

"Toad, we have to get going," Tabby was telling me as Kurt put Rogue in the backseat of the car and buckled her up, then sat beside her.

"Gimme a second," I said quietly, still not daring to breathe while Wanda teetered on the brink.

"We don't really _have _a second. For all we know, Magneto and company'll be on us in a few seconds. I knew this's stressful, but you can watch her in the car can't you?" I didn't want to listen, but Tabby was making sense. Softly, carefully, I gathered Wanda into my arms again and climbed into the front seat, keeping her in my lap and holding her tightly as Tabby peeled out and started speeding down the road. I didn't notice her speed, the turns, or anything else. My attention was fully locked on Wanda.

Please.

_Please._


	4. Chapter 4

We didn't know where else to go, so we ended up at the mansion. Sure, the x-geeks and the brotherhood didn't really get along, but the professor wouldn't allow them to attack us unless we attacked first, and that wasn't about to happen. On the ride over here, Wanda was slowly starting to heal, which threw my hopes into overdrive. Whatever Rogue did, it was working. Still, Wanda was a long way from even regaining consciousness by the time we got to the mansion. Tabby was talking, but I wasn't listening. I refused to let my senses wander from anything but the girl I held in my arms, trying adamantly to pick up some sign that everything was going to be alright.

"Toad! C'mon lets go," Tabby finally yelled loud enough to get my attention. "We gotta get her inside." I wasn't sure whether the X-men would be willing to help Wanda, seeing as how she was the biggest thorn in their side since she got here, but I had to hope that Professor X was as great as Kurt, Rogue and Tabby said he was. I gathered Wanda closer to me and gingerly slipped outta the jeep and followed the others inside.

"And just what do you think _you're_ doin'?" snarled a voice which forced me to look up, then take a hesitant step back.

"Logan, we need help," Rogue said, stepping forward and forcing his eyes onto her. "It's serious," she told him, and her tone was pleading. I didn't know what terms she was able to procure his powers under from earlier, but Logan and Rogue had a distinct bond that I don't think I'd ever understand. He thought about it, then his eyes softened and he sighed.

"I'll tell Charles, you head to the lower levels. And I expect a full explanation of all of this later," he told her, and she nodded at him before leading us away. We took an elevator down to the lower levels where their 'hospital' was. I can't say I'd ever been here before, but Tabby told me about it. When Rouge told me to lay her out on one of the beds there, I hesitated.

"Toad, she needs help. _Real _help, 'n she can't get that if you're holdin' onta her."

"I know," I told her, but hesitated a moment longer. I didn't wanna let her go, because as long as she was in my arms I knew she was safe, and I knew she was mine. But I also knew that I needed to do what was best for her, and right now that was giving her over to the care of the X-men, as much as I hated it. Slowly I moved to put her down but kept one of her hands in mine. I only got a few moments like this with her before we were interrupted by Jean and the big blue ape, Dr. McCoy.

"We'll take it from here, you all have done more than enough. Get some rest," Hank told us as he came over to inspect Wanda. "Oh and Tabitha? You should return Lance's jeep to him as soon as you can." Tabby blushed.

"Oh, uh, yeah. I was just borrowing it." He smiled knowingly at her, but it was distracted as he was already listing an inventory of Wanda's wounds.

"I'd like to stay," I heard myself ask as the others were almost out the door. It was unlike me to go against the crowd, or draw attention to myself, but I wasn't about to move from Wanda's side; X-mansion or not.

"No Toad, you have to leave," Jean was telling me, but I shook my head. For one moment I was able to pull my eyes off of Wanda and look Jean square in the face.

"If it were Scott lying here, would you leave?" I asked boldly, but didn't flinch as I saw her face scowl out of irritation.

"That's entirely different-"

"No, it's not," I shot back at her, squeezing Wanda's hand a little harder. I never had the courage, or even the will, to stand up for myself before but suddenly the fear of leaving Wanda alone with them gave me the words I needed to say. "I love her jus' as much, if not more 'n you love Scott. I'm stayin' yo, 'n that's it." I could see she was about to fire back when Dr. McCoy stepped in.

"You may stay Toad, we can't waste precious time arguing over such a trivial matter. But you have to keep out of our way and let us do our work unhindered." I nodded agreeably to his terms, and turned my worried eyes back on Wanda. I felt a hand on my shoulder, then accepted the chair given to me by Rogue before she disappeared out the door behind everyone else.

I watched silently as they hooked all types of machinery up to my Wanda and attempted to help her in any way possible. Every once in a while I was asked to move a bit to the left or right, but I never once let go of Wanda's hand. I inhaled when she did, and exhaled in unison with her as well, so intent on her as I was. I had no idea of what had actually taken place, if Magneto was still alive somewhere. He had to be, since we didn't come across a body, and Gambit still seemed to be employed by the master of metal. So what had happened?

Obviously they had fought. Wanda was in terrible shape, each breath she drew in was shaky at best. For a moment her breath hitched in her chest, causing panic to rise in me for a moment before she let it go and exhaled normally. What had Magneto done to her? Where was he now? Did he leave her alive on purpose? And what was Gambit doing, hanging around her nearly lifeless body? None of it added up, and the only one with answers was hanging on by just barely a thread.

Eventually Wanda was stabilized, but even then I refused to leave her side. I stayed constantly vigilant next to her, keeping watch and praying that everything I had done would pay off for her. They said she was looking good, and that recovery was imminent but their words did nothing to pacify me. She was still unconscious, which meant she still needed someone to keep guard over her. Especially here in the midst of the X-men.

I guess I must have dozed off, because the feeling of Wanda's hand being pulled from mine snapped me wide awake. I sat up and the blankets someone had dripped around me fell off, and I was looking around as my nerves buzzed. But no danger was there, no one was in the room with us. Slowly my eyes moved back to Wanda, who was sitting up with one hand on her head, the other in her lap, and giving me a strange look. It seemed as if she wanted to conjure the seething disdain she usually held for me, but was confused on how to find it. I dared not say one word for fear of upsetting her. Her eyes held mine for a long time, neither one of us moving or speaking, until finally she exhaled and put both her hands in her lap and looked down at them.

"How long was I out?" she asked. I took this as a good sign, since she wasn't hexing me or anything like that. I risked a quick glance at the clock behind her and shrugged.

"'Bout 15 hours maybe." She seemed surprised at that, and I guess she must have known what kind of shape she had been in.

"What….how is that possible?" she asked me, turning to look at me again with questions in her large sapphire eyes. I melted like the ice cube I was around her, and spilled how I convinced Rogue to help me out with my insane plan of using Wolverine's powers on her, and that it worked. Kinda. It took a lot longer because Wanda had such a diluted version. Rouge only took a tiny amount from Logan to begin with, which then had to be muddled with Wanda's own magic in order to be of any use to her. When I was done explaining she was giving me another strange look.

"Wait. You…-" But she was cut off by Beast entering the room.

"Wanda, glad to see you up and among the living," he told her with a toothy smile. She looked back at him and instantly tensioned. Without thinking I reached out and put my hand on her arm, which caused her to flinch violently away from me. The screens in the room started flickering along with the lights and Dr. McCoy looked straight at Wanda. "There's no need to be unnerved, Wanda. I have been helping you recover from your injuries, along with a few other trained X-men. No one is here to hurt you." His soothing voice seemed to take a hold on her, and the electricity returned to its normal humming. I retracted my hand and stared at the floor as Beast went over Wanda's health with her. I wasn't paying attention.

Of course everything that happened wouldn't change a thing between us. Why did I think it would? She would continue hating me, or at the very least ignoring me. Her feelings for me would never change, neither would our situation. I knew this deep in my mind, but still just the sight of her from my peripheral vision had my heart hammering in my chest, my throat constricting and my mouth feeling oddly dry. I was right of course, nothing would change. Which included my feelings for her, even though I knew they would never be reciprocated. It was at this time that I picked up my name being spoken by Dr. McCoy.

"…was Toad who deserves your thanks. He went through quite the adventure to secure your health and safety." I looked up right as they both looked at me. Instantly my eyes were back on the floor.

"It was nothin', yo," I muttered with a one-shoulder shrug. But Beast wouldn't let it go.

"Toad, without you Wanda was facing certain death. If you hadn't gotten to her as quickly as you did, or went through the extensive procedure that you managed, however questionable in ethics on the part involving Wolverine, Wanda might not be with us right now." The very thought had my stomach in knots, but I didn't show it. Instead I kept my gaze firmly on the linoleum beneath my feet and shrugged again. I heard a brush of cloth, probably Beast nudging Wanda, then her hand was on my shoulder that was closest to her. This caused me to look up, and immediately I was drowning in her stormy sea eyes.

"Thank you," she told me with a gentle voice and right then I felt as if I could fly. Not only was she thanking me, but she was touching me. Willingly! My blood was pounding through my veins and suddenly I had to remind myself to inhale. She gave me a small curve of her lips in a slight smile, and abruptly I was grinning from ear to ear.

"Heh, anytime yo." Anytime, anywhere… anything for her. I'd do anything to have her smile at me like that just one more time, but the moment was over far too soon. She took her hand back and looked back up at Beast.

"Would it be alright if I left?" He did a quick look over the charts in his hand, but I already knew the answer.

"There seems to be nothing wrong with you. You are in complete physical health. I see no reason why you couldn't do that." She nodded and looked down at her hands, then back at me.

"Toad?" she asked in a small, gentle voice as she tilted her head just slightly to one side. Just like that I was her slave, ready to do anything she asked of me, no matter what it was. I made an affirming noise, not trusting myself enough to speak words. "I think it's time to go home." Such a funny word; home. I never thought of the Brotherhood House, or any other residence, as a home. But now I realized anywhere she was, that was home enough for me.

* * *

><p>All thanks goes to Broken Eros and Melly Black. I had all but given up on this story, convinced that no one was reading it. Thank you, to both of you, for telling me to keep on with it. To others, PLEASE don't be hesitant to give me feedback! It's what keeps me going.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

The entire ride back to the Brotherhood House was silent, me not daring to say a word and ruin anything and Wanda refusing to acknowledge anyone's presence; especially mine. When we got there, Wanda went straight up the stairs and to her room, shutting the door before I could even make it in the house. I left out a sigh and felt my shoulders droop but then I felt a hand gently touch me from behind. "You don't have t' stay you know," I told Tabby. "You probably have much better things to do than baby sit me, yo."

"Normally I would stay, ya know I like hanging out here with you, but Logan made it really clear that I was just supposed to drop you off, return the car, then come back.

"'S'all good, yo," I told her with a half hearted grin. "Thanks for helpin' me with the rescue team." She smiled at me and shrugged her shoulders.

"Anytime! Whenever you feel like charging head first into a battle with no plan and no back up, count me in!" I smiled a bit at that, and she winked at me. Then she continued on a more serious note. "Slick, y'know I'll have your back for you, right?" I nodded at her.

""N you know I'd do the same for you Tabs. I owe you big on this one." A flash of guilt lit her eyes and she looked away. I knew what she was thinking, and took her hand. "Hey, it's not your fault. You did the right thing, yo. You did lots of right things. Wanda deserved to know the truth, 'n you were the only one brave enough to tell her. She'll thank you…someday. In her own way. 'N I'm thanking you right now." She was about to give me some kind of reply when Rogue pulled up in a car and yelled for her to get in.

"Gotta go. Hey stay outta trouble for a while, will ya?" she shouted as she jumped in with Rogue and took off. Yeah, stay out of trouble. That would be really easy for me, especially since things were dead silent from then on out.

Weeks passed without a word from Wanda, just the glimpse of her fleeing the room as soon as I entered it. Pietro took off as soon as he realized she had regained her memories, and she refused to talk to anyone else for any reason. Weeks turned into a month, then two and still nothing from her. Eventually we had to run into each other, since we both still lived in the same house, but it came much later than I wanted it to. She was sitting at the decrepit table, staring out the glass of the kitchen window when I walked in, looking for something to eat. We both froze for a minute, locking eyes and not daring to breathe, until she broke it my looking down and standing up.

"Wanda, wait," I said, putting myself intentionally in her way and blocking the doorway. Usually this would merit some sort of hex sending me flying out of her way and into the opposite room, but she hadn't so much as glanced at me since the rescue mission, let alone used her powers on me. Instead she scowled deeply at my intrusion but stopped a few feet away. She raised one eyebrow at me, asking what the hell I thought I was doing. At that point not even I was sure what I was doing, I just knew that I had to talk to her, had to say _something_. "Wanda…I…I. Look, I uh, I'm sorry if I upset you. 'N I'm sorry that I didn't tell you about Magneto earlier. 'N I'm sorry that I let you go alone…'n, well I'm sorry for anything else you might be mad at me for too." Wanda crossed her arms and continued to stare me down.

"Are you finished?" she asked. I sighed and sagged in defeat.

"Yeah, I guess…well, actually no, I'm not. Wanda, if I did somethin' wrong ya gotta let me know! 'N I can't let us go another two or three months or however long without talking. Please, jus' tell me what I did."

"You stood in my way when I was trying to leave the kitchen," she replied in a low and angry voice, but I wasn't having any of her shit today.

"Wanda, c'mon, please. I'm not askin' for your deepest secret or anythin', I just wanna know why you're mad at me. Jus' tell me, then I'll leave you alone." She scowled even deeper at me and looked past me through the door.

"Hey, I've got places to be. I don't have time for this." I don't know why I always double my output of stupid when I'm around her, but for some reason I reached my hand out and touched her arm. Instantly I was shot out of the kitchen, across the hall and crashing through the T.V and into the wall. My ears rang and my eyes swam, and it took me a minute to remember which way was up. It had been a while since she'd hexed me that hard and I had forgotten how to recover quickly. By the time I did she was already upstairs and in her room with the door slammed shut. A second later loud music was blasting from her lair, letting the world know she was shutting it out and unavailable until she said otherwise.

"Great," I muttered, rubbing my hand and pulling myself out of the wreckage. The other boys were gonna kill me for ruining the T.V. I decided to lay on the couch, at least until the room stopped spinning, just to pull myself together and figure out if anything major was hurt. Luckily it was just bumps and bruises, along with a killer headache. I massaged my temples, attempting to get the ringing to recede, and trying to figure what I had done this time to get her so angry. True, Wanda was a very independent woman, but did that mean she would hold such a terrifying grudge against me for saving her life? I guess my head must have hurt more than I realized because when I tried to stand, the pounding went into double time and my vision turned black and swayed side to side. "Whoa." I sat back down, putting a hand to my forehead and leaning back. I realized I should stay there for a while, and did so.

I must have dozed off at one point, because when I opened my eyes next the room was dark. I blinked a few times, trying to collect myself and figure out what time it was when something moved in the darkness, just at the other end of the couch. I let out a squeal of surprise, jumping up and behind the couch, or attempting to. I had forgotten about my earlier injuries and ended up flat on my back staring at the stars that my vision painted on the ceiling.

"Toad! Are you alright? I didn't mean to scare you, I just…..are you ok?" she asked, coming to crouch by my head.

"W-Wanda?" I asked groggily, squinting my eyes at her to try and make her form hold still. "What're you doin' out here? What time is it?"

"It's…" she glanced at the clock above what used to be a mantle then back to me. "A little after 2 am." She conveniently forgot to answer my other question. I tried to sit up and let out a groan. "Maybe you should hold still," she said cautiously.

"Na, I'll be fine, yo. I've had worse." She gave me one last look before standing and taking a step back.

"I better get to bed, it's late-" she started.

"No, wait. Please. You came down from somethin'. What did you need?"

"I just…" she sighed and rolled her eyes before leaning against the same arm of the couch that I had just brilliantly fallen over. "I guess I just…I don't know. Wanted to see if you were…ok." She looked away from me and stared off into the darkness.

"I thought you were mad at me," I said while pulling myself up. She helped me get back into a sitting position on the couch, then sat at the other end, as far away from me as she could. Still, at least she was on the same couch as I was.

"No, Toad, I wasn't mad at you. It's…ah, never mind."

"No, Wanda, please. I want to know. What is it I did?" She looked at me then, really looked at me, before closing her eyes and looking away.

"It wasn't what you did Toad, not like that. I'm just…I don't know. Now I have all of these thoughts, all of these memories, and I know which ones are real, but the others are there too. It's confusing. And I have all of this _anger_ built up side me, all towards a man that just months ago I thought loved me and cared for me. I guess I'm just…lost."

"Wanda, I'm so sorry-"

"Ugh, I didn't come down here for your _pity!_ You're ok, right? Good. Now I'm going to bed." I guess I didn't learn my lesson just hours before, because as she stood my arm reached out and I grabbed her wrist to try to keep her from leaving.

"Wait, I didn't mean to upset you," I told her in a rush, but even as the words spilled out of my mouth her opposite and very free hand glowed an ominous sapphire which cast a blue light on both of us in the dark room. I held perfectly still, looking up into her eyes and embracing myself for the worst. She held just as still for a moment, looking down at me straight into my eyes. After a few seconds of this, she let the tension flow away from her and the blue light went out as she pulled herself gently out of my grasp.

"Goodnight Toad," she said in dismissal and made her way up the stairs. I watched her go with wide eyes, begging her silently to come back but knowing she wouldn't at the same time. I heard the door slam again and knew she was out of reach once more, leaving me alone with my thoughts. What had made her come down in the first place? Was it really just to see if I was ok? That didn't sound like Wanda at all, she didn't give a fuck whether I was breathing or not. She must have been telling the truth when she said she was confused. She must have been dealing with a lot, but I had no idea what it was since she refused to talk to anyone about what had transpired between her and Magneto not too long ago. All I knew was that it was big, he was still alive, and that no matter how much she hid from it, he was definitely going to come back for her. Only this time, I wouldn't let her go alone. This time, I'd be ready.


	6. Chapter 6

My legs dangled beneath me, hidden by the leaves that swathed the tree that I perched in. No one could see me, and I couldn't see much else besides the sky and the green leaves that surrounded me, but that was perfectly acceptable for me. I'd taken to tailing Wanda whenever she went out these past few weeks, but took extra precautions so she would never see me. If she found out about me following her I'd be better off dead. Still, I couldn't leave her alone, not with Magneto knowing she had her memories back, and was back on track to being his number one adversary. Unlike Professor X, Wanda wanted Magneto dead and would stop at nothing to see this happen. She was powerful enough to do it too, and I knew that's what scared Magneto the most. Because of this, I knew he wouldn't fight fair, and so I always made sure to have Wanda's back, whether she knew it or not, in case he decided to blind side her.

Because of my self-appointed status as her invisible entourage, I had been dragged all over town and even to several different towns to various locations over the past few weeks. I had no idea what she was doing inside these buildings, nor did I ever care to find out. I didn't use my hearing to determine what was said, I focused only on her vital signs to make sure that she was ok. Now I welcomed the fact that she was meeting someone in the park because I got to stretch out in a giant oak and soak in the daylight. It felt good, and honestly it was way better than going to school. I was doing my best not to eaves drop, and had succeeded all day, until I heard a very familiar pitch that had my blood running cold. My eyes snapped open and I allowed myself to take in some of what was being said.

"…no idea the dangers of what you're trying to do," scolded that deep velvet purr. It was Mystique. Why would Wanda be talking to her? She'd been gone again, none of us bothered to ask why or where, we just accepted the fact that she disappeared frequently and welcomed the reprieve that lent us. Why would Wanda openly seek her out?

"I know more than you think I do. And either way, it doesn't matter, you don't have a choice. Just tell me what you know," Wanda hissed heatedly at the older woman.

"Wanda, as much as ah hate ta say it, Mystique's right on this one. Maybe ya should try a different approach, come at him from a different angle." I knew that drawl anywhere. Rogue! But that only furthered my confusion. None of those three women were on good terms with one another, why would they all meet together? And why in the park? It just didn't make sense to me. Wanda was up to something, and something big if she got Mystique and Rogue to collaborate on it cooperatively.

"I don't have time for that!" Wanda was saying to Rogue. "He's had too much time as it is. For all I know, he could be heading here right now, and you are the only thing standing in my way of launching my own attack! All I need to know is what I'm up against. Tell me what he was working on." I could tell her attention switched to Mystique, who had taken several steps back.

"How _dare_ you t-" Mystique started to say, but was cut off my Wanda again.

"Shut it! Did you hear that? Listen…." I opened up my hearing and let in all the other sounds around me. People, dogs, the wind, all of that felt like a normal day at the park to me. But then I heard it too. I didn't wait to see what I knew was coming, I already knew Gambit had great aim, and I knew his target. I didn't care what object he had charged, I only cared that it was headed straight towards the Scarlet Witch. Without thinking I jumped from where I was and tackled Wanda to the ground. "Toad!" she screamed but I didn't listen, just pulled her into me, keeping her between the ground and I as I shielded her with my body. Just seconds later there was a terrific explosion that vibrated deep into my bones, letting me know how close she had just come to being blown to pieces. When the smoke subsided I looked up, though still stayed hunkered over Wanda, trying to listen or get a glimpse of any other hints of the Cajun. There, at the very edge of my hearing but getting rapidly closer, this crackling hiss of something charged by Gambit's kinetic energy was coming towards us again. This time though, Wanda was ready. She shoved me off and stood, using her right arm in an arc type movement to turn the paper airplane back around and head it straight back at the metal platform that was now taking up most of the sky.

"Ya'll better get to the park, 'n fast! Magneto's here waging war on us, in broad daylight!" Rouge was shouting into some kind of device, and I was startled to see one of her gloves had already been pulled off. I didn't have long to gape though, because a wall of fire was headed out way, courtesy of Pyro. "Get down!" Rogue yelled at me, and I obliged without hesitation. Wanda stayed standing merely three feet in front of us, both of her hands glowing blue as she pulled them simultaneously in an upward motion, wrists first, then flicked her fingertips up and pushed a wall of blue hex magic out to swallow the flame. I glanced up and noticed that Mystique had already disappeared, but Rogue was now standing with her back to Wanda and I with me in the middle, facing off against Remy.

"Hullo, _Cherie,"_ he crooned at her, twirling his staff around him in a playful manner and giving her a cocky grin.

"I ain't your 'Cherie' today Remy," she spat back at him. Guess they were still in some kinda dispute. Either way, I wasn't gonna get in the middle of it. I jumped out to make the third point of a triangle between Rogue and Wanda, keeping an eye out for the two Acolytes I had yet to see. I didn't have to wait long, as Colossus came lumbering out from behind a group of trees, not far away. His metal face glowed red for a moment as Pyro launched another fire attack, then blue as Wanda quenched it and threw one of her own back at him, which pushed him off of the metal platform and onto the ground. I had no idea what I was supposed to do again the giant metal man, but I held my ground as he advanced. He ripped a tree out of the ground twirled it once before throwing it at me. When it reached a distance of 12 feet and 9 inches away, I launched my tongue at it while jumping into the air and pulled it up a little higher so that it flew over all three of us before landing on the ground again. I didn't have enough time to react to the metal bench that was now being thrown or way, but I was able to jump into the side of it so it caught me in the chest instead of hitting Wanda.

"Toad!" I heard her call as I was thrown backwards by the force of it. I distinctly felt several ribs whine in protest to the metal bars colliding with them, but chose to ignore it just then. Wanda still needed me. Remy and Rogue were locked in hand to hand combat as she attempted to knock him out with her touch, and he seemed to be just playing with her, though pushing her backwards one step at a time and definitely gaining ground. From somewhere behind me there was an enormous roar, letting us know where Sabertooth was. I pulled myself up and went back to standing beside Wanda, now close enough to her and Rogue that we were almost touching. Just as a giant wave of metal shards filled the sky above us, Wanda made an elaborated waving movement, as if pulling a blanket over us, and the shards shattered against a wall of blue hex magic that formed a dome over our triad. Wanda couldn't take on Magneto and his whole team with just Rogue and I as backup. We were going to lose, and I would lose Wanda. A fear ignited within me that burned deep into my heart. I would not lose her. I couldn't.

As the blue shield lifted, a few playing cards that glowed orange were tossed our way before any of us could do anything about it. Seconds before they hit, they were shot out of the sky with red beams of light from somewhere behind us. I whipped around to witness the X-men emerging from a large jet that had touched down, and Scott at its front ready to shoot down any more would-be bombs headed our way. Usually the sight of them meant trouble, but just then I had never been happier to see the geek squad running towards us. Thank God Rogue had been attacked as well, and that she was now a part of their pack. They always defended their own, and right then that meant Wanda and I were on their team too, teamed up against the common enemy of Magneto and his boy band. I didn't see Wolverine among them, which explained the absence of Sabertooth and the hearty roar we had heard earlier.

They all filed out to form an outer circle around us, which pushed most of the attacks back aside from Remy, who was still locked in with Rogue. From there on out, it was utter chaos. I could barely tell what I was doing, let alone everyone else. Flashes of light were fired from either side. All I kept track of was Wanda, and anything headed her way. I was able to slime most of the intended objects, and what was too big for me to slime, I lifted farther into the air like I had the tree so that it would glide smoothly over us. I could feel the others around me, but never got a chance to see any of them. Eventually I got knocked in the shoulder by a loose piece of something, I wasn't even sure what it was, and thrown from our circle for a few seconds. It was there that I observed why the X-men always bested us Brotherhood whenever we went up against each other. They moved as one, always looking out for each other's backs and never losing contact with one another. They really were a team, were as the Brotherhood was just a group of mutants. Tabby pulled out five explosives, handing them off to Nightcrawler as he disappeared, then sprouting seven more which Jean manipulated up and onto Magneto's platform. Ice Man created an ice slide down from the platform for everyone who was up there which included Amara, Spike, Kitty and Sunspot, which got them all to the ground and into the force field that Jean put around us seconds before a giant explosion pushed the enormous slab of metal straight down from the sky and crashing into the ground.

The smoke and dust completely covered us all, but I was able to find my way back to Wanda using my other senses, so attuned I was to her. There was a dead silence for a long time, and I couldn't tell if the people around me were a threat or the ones on our side. Everyone held their breath as the smoke began to clear, and a figure was seen coming towards us, his cape billowing out behind him. Before we could react, Wanda snarled something at him as she threw strong hex magics directly at him. He surrounded himself in a metal cocoon until they passed, and continued forward towards her. When he got closer I could see that there was something in his hand…it looked like metal circle that was broken by about two inches at one part. With one gesture, he sent the thing flying at us. It was among us before any of us could do anything about it, but it wasn't directed at any of us. Instead, it went to Gambit and settled at the base of his neck, clasping into place so that the small break was at the front, directly below his Adam's apple. He offered up a crooked grin as it settled into place, and gave Rogue a wink. Just like that he launched into action, but not with his usual powers. Hexes were being thrown at each of the people closest to him, and they went down with just one hit. He was using the blue fire of Wanda's magic! Unlike the rest of us, who were astounded by Remy's new ability, Wanda jumped into action, combating his bastardized hexes with her own curses. They seemed to match each other; Remy was faster, but Wanda was better. It was her own power, after all, and she had more experience wielding it. I tried to move forward to help her, but metal bonds clasped themselves around me and all the rest who were left standing, save for Wanda and Gambit who continued to fight fire with fire. So this was what Magneto wanted: His daughter's unfathomable power with chaos magic, in someone he controlled and could dictate their every move. That must have been what had happened when she went to face him. He didn't kill her because, I guess for some reason, he still needed her. And now he was testing his new toy out, pitting the swift and sly Gambit against Wanda to see how it faired.

Eventually Wanda ran out of patience, dancing with Remy as she was, and I knew she would. She wasn't one for flair or panache, just results. She crouched down for a second, then raised up her body and threw her hands far above her, creating a whirling pillar of blue hex magic before taking a step forward and throwing her hands at Gambit, which forced the magic to slam into him like a wave of witchcraft. Remy didn't stand a chance against her raw magic, fueled by rage and betrayal. He was pounded into the ground and pushed hard enough to make a large dent there with him at its center. When the blue faded, he made a move to stand but Wanda raised her right hand and threw a giant ball of hex magic at him, then another with her left, and more still, one with each step she took towards him until she stood over him in a pit deep enough that could be his grave. And perhaps that's exactly what she had in mind, judging by the look in her eyes. She raised both of her hands, which were glowing a vibrant blue, when Rogue interrupted her.

"Wanda, don't!" Rogue struggled against the metal bonds holding her to the ground, but to no avail. Wanda looked over at her, as if trying to remember where she was. "Please, don't kill him. He's not the one you want! He's just Magneto's experiment. Please, don't kill him."

"Yes…you're right," Wanda said softly, and turned away from the unconscious Cajun after wrapping him in a tight blue sphere to make sure he didn't wake up and get away. Wanda turned her sights on the master of metal, who had been watching the whole ordeal a safe distance away, hovering just high enough to see what was happening. As soon as she turned around, Magneto started to retreat. "Oh no you don't, not this time," she snarled. As she neared me I noticed she was breathing heavily and her heart beat had sky rocketed. Sweat beaded her face, but still she locked her eyes directly on Magneto and drew up her arms once more, summoning a giant wave of hex power and throwing it with all of her might at her father. He tried to escape by flying higher and wrapping himself in metal, but it did no good. Wanda's last act of witchcraft caught his cocoon and threw it straight into the ground, creating another crater that now housed Magneto. I could tell she wanted more than anything to go to it and finish all of this, but that last act had taken everything she had left. As Magneto lost consciousness maybe 100 feet away, the metal wrapped around me melted off and I was able to stand. Wanda took another shaky step towards him, but crumbled and fell. I jumped forward and caught her before she hit the ground, but just barely. The few others that were still conscious also rose, but didn't move; they didn't know what to do now. Scott was out, and so was Jean which left them basically leaderless.

I stood up straight with Wanda in my arms and looked around. Only Rogue, Tabby and Spike were left standing, looking around at the unconscious others. Rogue stood over the still glowing sphere in the ground that was Remy, then she turned to look at the rest of us.

"Now what?" asked Tabby. That was a very good question.


	7. Chapter 7

I lay Wanda down on her bed gently and she made a slight noise before turning on her side away from me. The X-men had headed home to the mansion to inform their professor what had happened after Scott was brought back around and told them to do so. We had to leave Remy there, since none of us could get through Wanda's hex around him without getting thrown several feet after touching the shield. The Scott assured me that Remy would be watched though, so that he wouldn't have a chance to escape without answering some questions first. Nightcrawler had gone to see if Magneto had made it, and apparently he did. The crater was still there, but Magneto and all of his flunkies save for Gambit had disappeared.

Wanda had overexerted herself and never even opened her eyes on the way home, or even when I climbed the steps to place her where she now laid. The house was quiet, which was strange but welcome since I wanted her to sleep. Quietly I pulled a chair over from her armoire so that I could sit beside her and think as well as watch over her.

She had been spectacular. I never knew just how powerful she had grown. She had yet again been faced against Magneto and lived to tell the tale. She had even been the one that sent _him_ flying! No wonder Magneto feared her; he had reason to. But now I worried that the next time they met, she wouldn't be so lucky. We had the x-men to back us up this time. And what the hell had that collar looking thing done to Gambit, that he was able to use hexes just like Wanda's? Magneto was brewing something, and now more than ever it was clear that he had a giant bull's-eye painted all over my Wanda.

"Oh Wanda," I whispered and touched her cheek gently. "How do you get yourself into these messes?"

"As I recall, _he _came to _me._" I had thought she was out cold, and wasn't expecting her to hear me let alone reply. I jumped at the sound of her voice and my eyes were pulled up to hers. They fluttered open and found my gaze staring at her intently, and she stopped. I couldn't tell what thoughts were going through her head, but she didn't seem angry at me so I offered her up a smile.

"How're you feelin'?" I asked cautiously, and she blinked rapidly for a minute before moving. One of her hands went up to her head as she eased herself up and looked down into her lap. She was quiet for a minute before she answered me.

"I've been worse, but I've also been better I guess." Then her sapphire eyes found me again, and I found myself unable to breathe. "What happened, how did we get back here?" she asked. My mouth had gone dry and it felt like every word I wanted to say to her was a blade stuck in my throat. "Toad?" she asked when I failed to answer her. I cleared my throat and pulled my gaze to the floor so that I could focus a little better.

"Uh, well you uh, passed out 'n well I wasn't sure how long you were gonna be out for, so I brought you back here so that you could sleep." I risked a peek up at her, wondering if she would be angry, or how she would react. She seemed to be thinking about what I said, but was still looking at me. Suddenly a flare lit her eyes as if she remembered something.

"Gambit! Where is he? Did he get away?" she asked in a rush, and I could sense a kind of panic in her voice.

"No, he's still at the park, still stuck in your hex thingie. No one could get to him ta move him, so the X-men put a watch on him 'n Tabby'll tell us if anything changes." That seemed to satisfy her for the moment because she nodded and let out a slight exhale. "You know," I started slowly, not sure if I was pushing my luck. "You really should try to get some rest. You did a lot today, yo. I know you're tired, 'n there's no harm in getting some of your strength back." I saw her eyebrows knit together and winced in anticipation, but nothing else happened.

"I don't need to sleep," she told me in a harsh tone and I looked up at her.

"Wanda," I started in a scorning tone but was interrupted.

"What? You don't know me, and who are you to tell me what to do?" she snapped. I let out a sigh and watched her for a second or two before she dropped her gaze from mine and looked down at her hands.

"I'm not tellin' you what ta do, yo. I'm jus' suggestin' that maybe now would be a good time to catch some z's." When she didn't reply I thought it was because she was angry with me, but when she wouldn't meet my eyes I knew that wasn't it. "Wanda, what's really wrong?" I asked which did bring her eyes up to glare at me.

"Nothing is _wrong_. Get out of my face and out of my room!" I could tell that I had pushed her too far, and there was no going back. Slowly I stood and put the chair back before facing her. I was thinking of what to say, but she beat me to it. "Out, Toad. Now."

"Fine, I'll leave. But if you need anything, I'll be close." I watched her for a moment longer, then moved towards the door with her eyes trained on me like I was a target. When I left, I heard her utter a sigh, and my shoulders slumped. She was defending something, I knew that much. I just had no idea what it really was. I decided to wait for her by lounging across the top of the stairs instead of going somewhere else where I might miss her exit. I knew she wouldn't seek me out when she was ready to go, so I would just have to follow her.

I didn't have to wait long.

About an hour later she emerged, and when her eyes fell on me she scowled, but said nothing as I scrambled to stand and get out of her way. She didn't say one word to me as I followed her down the stairs and out the door. I disappeared into the kitchen to grab one of the few pieces of fruit there and a granola bar, but then was behind her once more as she stalked off in the direction of the park she had left Gambit in. The whole way there she ignored me completely, and I was content to let her do this. I knew that if I attempted to speak to her, she'd only get angry and I wasn't sure she had that much energy to spare.

The park looked like a war zone, and I guess in a way it had been. Trees, or remnants of what had once been trees, were strewn across the grounds, metal scraps littered the grass and burn marks were scattered about. The bench that had once been by the pathway had been thrown into the lamppost next to the still-glowing blue shield that was Gambit's location. Wanda's eyes fell on this, and determination seemed to emanate from her. Angrily she stomped towards her prey, but my eyes were looking everywhere else. The X-men said they would post a guard to look after him, so I was looking and listening for what I hoped I wouldn't find. Sure enough, my hearing picked up a rustling not far from Wanda's left which caused me to jump between the two. Wanda looked up at my actions, and then narrowed her eyes at Rogue as she emerged from the shadows of a fallen, twisted tree.

"You are to stay out of my dealings with Gambit," Wanda told Rogue, who crossed her arms and set her jaw stubbornly.

"'N if ah don't?" Rogue spat back.

"This isn't a negotiation. That was your one and only warning," Wanda told her, but took a firmer stance as if she expected Rogue to come at her.

"Wanda, ah can't let you hurt him," Rogue told her. "I know he's done wrong by you, 'n I get that you're pissed, but I can't stand by 'n let you kill him for it. It wasn't his fault either, 'n you know it. He's not the one you're really mad at."

"I know what you're trying to do, and it's not going to work this time. Besides, I'll only hurt him if he doesn't give me what I need right away," Wanda told her coolly, still tensed and ready for an attack. I knew Wanda was running low on energy and needed to save any she had left, so I decided to intervene here before it got any worse.

"Look, yo. Wanda jus' needs some answers, right?" Wanda nodded, but still didn't take her eyes of Rogue. "'N Rouge jus' wants to keep Gambit as safe as possible, without him getting' any more beat up, right?" Rogue nodded in agreement as well, but also chose not to divert her attention. "So can't we agree to ask Gambit to tell us what he knows, 'n agree to not do anythin' unnecessary?" Both women stared at one another, but finally Rogue backed down first. She relaxed her stance and leaned against the tree she had been hiding behind.

"I can live with that if you can," she told Wanda, who in turn also backed down.

"Fine. Just don't interfere, and nobody gets hurt." Wanda turned her back to Rogue, leaving me to watch the X-man as she went to release Gambit from his hex-sphere of a prison. I didn't know much about the Cajun, but I knew enough to be ready for what came next. The second Wanda retracted her magic and let it seep back into her hands, a cluster of glowing clods of dirt were thrown at her, which were clustered close enough together that I was able to slime them all down and away from Wanda. With a yank of her right hand, Wanda grabbed Gambit's mutant powers from him, and with a wave of her left hand root from the ground beneath him snapped up and around his torso, binding his arms to his side and holding his back flat against the ground. "That wasn't very nice," Wanda scorned at him. She was playing it cool, but I could see that she was still exhausted from earlier. Those two small actions had cause sweat to start beading her forehead and back of her neck. I chose then to slip the apple I had grabbed from the kitchen earlier into her hand. She seemed surprised at first, but we both knew she was running on empty and couldn't deny it. Still, she didn't want Rogue or Gambit to see her weakness, so she played it off by falling into a careless crouch next to the hole Gambit still laid in, putting her elbows on her knees and allowing her free hand to dangle between them while the hand with the apple came up by her face as she took a bite. "Gambit," she said, addressing him in a curt tone.

"Wanda," Gambit replied with a nod of his head. "Come back ta finish me off?" he asked her. Wanda risked a look over her shoulder at Rogue, who had come closer to stand beside the twisted lamppost, then shook her head.

"Not just yet. All I need from you is answers. If you're willing to give me everything I want, then this will be over quickly and painlessly, and you'll be free to go on your way." She took another few bites of her apple, slowly regaining energy as Gambit mulled her offer over.

"Well, I c'n tell you dat the weather is lookin' mighty nice 'bout now," he said with a wicked half-smile.

"That's not what I'm talking about and you know it. This," her hand snaked out and grabbed the collar off of his neck and dangled it in front of his face. "What is it? How does it work? And why does Magneto have it? Tell me everything you know about this, and about his plans." As it hung there in the air above his face, I saw why Gambit wasn't able to use his own newly gifted hex-powers to escape Wanda's shield before now; in Wanda's previous attack on him it had busted in several places and thus had been rendered useless.

"You know better 'n ta ask a man ta rat out dem dat employ 'im. I can't give ya de answers you're lookin' for Wanda." Wanda's face darkened, and I knew what was coming next. Luckily she had already polished off the fruit I had given her, because she had to toss the core to the side in order to use her hands. Rogue saw what was coming as well, and started forward.

"Wanda, don't!" she cried. Wanda used her other open hand to make a swirling, snake-like movement. This brought the lamppost to life and made it slither around Rogue's torso several times before lifting her to hover above the ground. Wanda's hand that focused on Gambit turned palm up and she brought her fingers together in a crushing motion. The tree roots that held him captive squeezed tighter around him until he let out a cry of pain. "Remy!" Rogue called, to which Wanda flicked her fingers. I guessed that this last hex was supposed to steal Rogues voice, but Wanda was so weakened at this point that she was drawing from her own life-force to work her power. Instead it only quieted Rogue to the point where we could barely hear her.

"Wanda," I warned softly from behind her as I watched the toll all of this was taking on her. She was more pale now than ever before and tremors shook through her, but she only shook her head at me and focused her glare on Gambit.

"Now, Gambit. I need those answers now." I could see him squirming and grunting in discomfort, but I know that's not what made him give in. His red eyes cast up as saw Rogue struggling from her own bonds and screaming things we could barely discern.

"Let her go, Wanda. Let Rogue go 'n I'll tell you whatever you like."

"I'll put her down _after_ you tell me everything, and I'm sure you haven't lied to me at any time. Understood?" There was a defeated look in Gambit's eyes as he nodded.

"Magneto lured you ta dat spot a few weeks ago so he could get a sample. A sample of your magic. He's been workin' on somethin' with other mutants, other powerful mutants. It's a way to steal somebody's power from them 'n put it inta someone else." He paused for a moment, as if he didn't want to say any more but Wanda scowled as him and brought the fingers of the hand that controlled the lamppost closer together, which tightened her hold on Rogue even farther. "Stop it!" he cried out.

"Keep going," Wanda told him harshly, but released Rogue slightly. "How does it work?"

"I-, I dunno. Look, dat's the truth. I wasn't involved in de plannin' of any of dis. I was jus' de lab rat. All he told me was dat he didn't want ta lose such a powerful mutant ability, 'n dat it was a waste on you. Honestly Wanda, I don't know how it works. I jus' know dat whenever I or whoever has dat collar uses it, it steals it from you."

"And what happens when it's all gone?" Wanda demanded. She wasn't wasting time on getting angry, I could tell that she was barely holding on to the two of them. She had mere seconds, maybe a minute, before she gave out.

"It," Gambit sighed and looked away. "It takes from you 'n puts everythin' it can inta dis collar. Then…well, when there's nothin' left ta take from….it kills you."


	8. Chapter 8

Just like that everything Wanda had going collapsed. Rouge and Gambit were released, Rogue was given her full voice back, and Gambit regained his power. They raced together, but I wasn't watching them. I was there standing behind Wanda when she buckled. She collapsed into my arms, but from some miracle was still conscious.

"Wanda, oh God Wanda? Can you hear me?" I asked quietly. Her breathing was extremely shallow, she was cold to my touch and a cold sweat beaded across her skin which was paler than it ever should have been. Her eyes were closed but I could tell she was still awake. "Wanda?" I asked again in a panic.

"I'm fine, Toad," she told me in a soft, raspy whisper as she coughed. I knew it was a lie.

"I'm takin' you home," I told her but she shook her head. I knew what she wanted, but I also knew she was nowhere near healthy enough to be going after Magneto right then. "No, Wanda. Not right now. He'd kill you in one second, if even that. I'm takin' you home, 'n that's that." Her eyes opened then to look at me, but they were dulled and lacked any type of rage that usually was boiling somewhere in them. I guess that's what scared me the most.

"Now wait a sec," started Rogue, who was still being held by Gambit, but was glaring at us. "Wanda broke her promise. Ya think ah am 'bout ta let that go?" Uh oh. No way could I face down both Rogue and Gambit on my own, and Wanda was little more than dead weight at this point. Still, I held my ground and met Rogue's eyes evenly.

"Is Gambit hurt?" I asked Rogue.

"That's not what ah-" she started, but I cut her off.

"Is Gambit hurt?" I asked her again.

"Well, no, but-"

"Good. Are you hurt?" I asked, and again Rogue looked uncomfortable, but shook her head. She attempted o say something else, but I didn't let her. "Good. Both you 'n Gambit are fine. I don't see a problem here, so I'm gonna take her home before anything else can happen to her." With that I took a giant leap that propelled both Wanda and I far out of both of their ranges, and I kept going until we got back to the House.

"You can put me down now," Wanda told me softly. I didn't want to, but I knew it was more than a request. As we got to the front door I stopped and gently set her on her feet. She seemed to sway a bit, but stayed up. Still, I kept my eyes glued to her. She opened the front door and stepped through, but froze one step in. "Pietro?" she shouted angrily. Shit. Couldn't she get just one second of rest between all the craziness? I peeked around her just in time to see Pietro take off out the back door, leaving Blob and Lance standing in the living room. "What was he doing here?" she demanded of them as I closed the door behind us. Lance shrugged and turned away. I knew Wanda wanted to use her magic, but we both understood that that wasn't an option. "Lance! What was he saying?" He only shrugged and continued walking away.

"We're not allowed to tell you," Blob said with a shrug before sitting down on the couch. Wanda glowered at them and I could see a blue light start to light her finger tips. I was about to warn her not to when she swayed a bit, and stumbled backwards the few steps into me, and put a hand on my shoulder to steady herself.

"That's it, we'll figure everything else out later, yo. Not now. Right now, we take you upstairs." She closed her eyes and put her free hand to her forehead, but allowed me to slowly lead her up to her room and sit her on the bed. "Would you please sleep now?" I asked her. I meant it as rhetorical, since it was so obvious how much she needed to recuperate, but she was shaking her head. "Ya gotta be kiddin' me, yo. Are you serious?"

"I can't. I have things to do. I have to figure all of this out, I have to find Magneto, I have to-"

"Tomorrow," I said as I cut her off. "You can do all of that later, when you're not about to pass out. Please, would ya just lay down and rest?"

"No! Does Magneto 'rest'?" she yelled, and just like that everything clicked for me; the reason she had been so resistant to resting up, why she had been so defensive, and why she was on edge more than ever recently. She must have realized that her outburst had relayed more than she had meant, because she instantly looked away and clamped her jaw tightly.

"Is that what you think?" I asked her. "You think that Magneto's better 'n you?" She sighed, but remained fixated on the wall. "Wanda, you can't drive yourself to this extent 'n ignore your limitations. Everyone has 'em, even Magneto. You have to learns yours, 'n learn how to work within 'em, not ignore 'em."

"It's not enough," she told me.

"Well neither is you pushin' yourself half-to-death! You can't be scared to admit you're human." She flinched when I said the word scared, and another realization hit me. That's what she had been hiding before. I put my hand out on hers, which caused her to look down and scowl. "You're scared, aren't you?" I asked in a very soft voice. She froze, then slowly looked up into my eyes. In her face I could see the battle her thoughts were having. "You don't have to put on a brave face for me, Wanda. It's ok to be scared." With everything that had happened to her, and how exhausted she was, I could see her breaking right before my eyes. I could tell she wanted to yell and scream and get mad, which was her usual defense, but was just too tired to. She pulled her hand from mine and looked away, but when she spoke her voice shook.

"Of course I'm scared," she told me bitterly, pulling her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. "He's better than I am, he has a team behind him, his powers are stronger than mine, and he has a plan thought out and in the works of how to dispose of me. I have no one to turn to for help, and at any second he, or one of the Acolytes or even one of the Brotherhood could come pounding through that door. Yes, Toad, I'm scared. But that won't help anything, now will it?"

"Look, I know it's not a lot of help or anythin', but you know you'll always have me on your side." She choked on a laugh as I said that, and it was only then that I realized that while she had been facing away from me, saying all of this, she had been crying. "Oh Wanda." Without thinking about it or allowing myself time to hesitate, I laid myself onto her bed and gently pulled her into my arms. At first she resisted, trying to push me away. Then, slowly, she eased into my hold and allowed her face to rest against my chest. This surprised me more than anything, but I didn't show it. We were both quiet for a long time, both lost in our thoughts, until she looked up at me.

"Toad," she said softly, her eyes were still red but dry now.

"Yeah?" There was another long silence, but I patiently waited for her to amass the courage to continue her thought. My patience was rewarded. "All this time, I mean…all those times you were always there for me….and I did nothing for you…I guess, I'm just asking; why?" My arms tightened around her for a second before I responded.

"You've always known why, Wanda. Everyone has. Because I love you." Again I saw her eyes start to water, but she blinked rapidly to keep them from overflowing. "I didn't mean to upset you, I'm sorry-" I stopped because she was shaking her head. She closed her eyes to gain some composure.

"I'm not upset. It's…I don't know. I don't know how to explain it."

"You don't have to," I told her, which made her open her eyes again. She didn't have to explain anything, I understood just fine. For someone like her, who had never seen any selfless acts, or ever felt any kind of love from anyone, it was too much to take. She wasn't sure how to cope with it, how to understand it. All she knew in her life was hate, so the opposite emotion was too foreign for her to accept right away. I had known this all along, I used to be the same way. "Why do you think I never gave up?" I asked her with a smile. "I knew you'd come to it in your own time, in your own way. I just had to wait." There was something in her eyes, in her face, that I didn't understand. It was something I hadn't seen there before. I was about to ask her what was wrong when she pushed her lips to mine.

Everything else in the world stopped on a dime, and for that moment time didn't exist. My heart seemed to be trying to choke me by blocking the air from my lungs, and my stomach seemed to be spinning so fast I couldn't tell which way was up. Every single nerve in my body became super active, craving to get a touch, a scent, a portion of Wanda. The spicy-sweet aroma that was hers seemed to fill every pore, every aspect of me. My senses became overloaded with everything that was Wanda, and that suited me just fine. I began to kiss her back, and I felt one of her hands flow up and rest behind my head, at the base of my neck. Everywhere she touched me was like an icy fire that I cherished deeply. I had imagined this moment over and over again, but it had never been like this. This was REAL. I could feel her soft skin brushing mine, I could hear her heart beating just as fast as my own, and I never wanted it to end. Eventually she did pull away from me, but she was smiling as she did so. I was still trying to catch my breath and find my thoughts when her lips brushed my cheek.

"Don't look so surprised. I thought you had everything figured out," she told my playfully as she released me to lay on her back on the bed, pulling me down beside her.

"I don't think I could ever figure you out, no matter how much I tried," I admitted. She smiled again at that and mover in closer to me, pulling one of my arms over her and resting her head on my chest.

"Good. I don't like know-it-alls." She closed her eyes and let out a yawn, which reminded me of how tired she must be.

"Will you please sleep now?" I asked her.

"Only if you promise to still be here when I wake up." Her request surprised me, but I was more than willing to oblige.

"I'll always be here, as long as you want me." Her eyes opened again for a moment, catching mine and holding them. She reached up and once more allowed her lips to brush mine, throwing my heart into overdrive, before settling back down.

"Don't go saying things like that," she told me as she closed her eyes and pulled a blanket over us. "A girl might go and do something crazy, like believe it." Within seconds she was out cold as sleep reclaimed her. I stayed awake a bit longer, making sure she was safe and protected, but eventually sleep of the better of me as well, and I joined her.


	9. Chapter 9

It was dark outside by the time I woke up, but other than that I had no idea what time it was. Wanda was still sleeping, which I smiled at. She looked so happy and peaceful there in my arms. But, as with all good things in life, it wouldn't last. A few seconds later I realized why I had woken up. There were sounds of footsteps headed our way, heavy ones that sounded like they were in some kind of combat boot. I sighed in recognition: Lance.

"Wanda," I whispered gently. I didn't want Lance to be the one to wake her up, and I only had a few seconds. "Wanda, I'm sorry but you gotta wake up." Slowly her eyes fluttered open, and for a second she looked confused. She sat up, me with her, and I put a hand at the small of her back. "Lance is gonna come in here in a few seconds." She didn't have a chance to ask why, because just then the door opened and he walked in. He looked jumpy, and was certainly surprised to see me there with Wanda.

"Toad?" he said, giving voice to his astonishment. Wanda glared at him.

"What do you want Lance? Or did you just come here to tell me my _brother_told you more secrets I can't know about?" Lance looked at her and shook his head.

"No, nothing like that. Well, it has to do with that. Look, can we talk on the way? We don't have a real big window of opportunity here," Lance told her. He kept his voice low and his eyes shifted from place to place, like he expected something to jump out of any of the corners at any given second.

"On the way to where? What makes you think I'd trust you enough to get in a car with you? I know Pietro's on Magneto's side, and I saw you with him just today! I'm not stupid Lance, now get out." I put my hand on hers, which made her look at me.

"Hold on a sec, yo. Somethin's up," I told her quietly, just loud enough for her ears. "Look at how nervous he is. I've never seen him like this. Hear him out, at least." At first I could tell she wanted to ignore me, but then she relaxed her face and nodded.

"Fine. Lance, tell me what's going on." Lance seemed surprised at her changing her mind after I said something, but didn't dwell on it.

"Look, long story short he's coming for you. Tonight. Right now's the only time when the house isn't being watched, and that time is closing. Now are you gonna trust me or not?" Wanda tensed up at his words, then looked at me. Lance didn't have to say who 'he' was, we all knew. Magneto was coming for her now, when she was still weak.

"Toad, should we trust him?" I wasn't used to Wanda asking for my insights or advice. Usually she did whatever she wanted, without asking anyone's permission. I looked back at Lance and focused on him with all of my senses. Elevated heart rate, over active nervous system, and he couldn't hold still.

"He's really freakin' out over there, yo. Whenever Lance went on a mission, he'd be cool 'n collected. He's good at lying, not good at double crossing, especially Magneto. I say we go for it. If he's right, we don't have a lotta time." Wanda nodded, and without another hesitation she stood and helped me up. We didn't grab anything –not much to grab anyways- and like that we were in Lance's jeep, speeding off into the night.

"How do you know that he's not following us?" Wanda asked Lance.

"I don't," Lance replied, which drew my eyes to the sky behind us to keep a look out.

"Where are we going?" Wanda inquired.

"To the one place even Magneto thinks twice about raiding. The x-mansion," Lance told her.

"What! What makes you think they will help? They have their own problem with me." Lance shrugged.

"That's true, but they helped you out before, didn't they?" he asked. He was right. It felt like an eternity ago, but it was really only a few days. When Wanda had been so near death, they had brought her back and made sure that she was fine. She must have been remembering the same thing, because she was quiet for the rest of the ride. Soon enough, the jeep stopped in an alcove not far from the back of the mansion. "This is as far as I go. I gotta get back before they know I took off." Wanda and I hopped out, but she turned around.

"Why? Why help me? What's in it for you?" Lance looked torn for a second, but then rolled his eyes and looked away.

"I do need to ask you one thing." Wanda crossed her arms, but said nothing. "Look, I don't know much, but I know this; shit's gonna hit the fan. Not for just you, but for everyone. Can you….can you just get a message to Kitty for me?" He looked over and Wanda, and she raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Tell her…tell her that if things get too crazy, to leave a sign at our spot, and I'll make sure she gets out ok."

"I'll tell her," Wanda responded, and Lance let out a breath of relief.

"Thank you." He looked between the two of us for a second, then shrugged and took off. Wanda and I watched him go for only a second before turning to face the giant steep hill that the x-mansion was on top of. Wanda looked worried, but I smiled at her.

"Don't worry yo, I got this," I told her and started walking to the right.

"Toad, you're going the wrong way aren't you? Even I can see the mansion is that way."

"I know the mansion is that way, but our easy way _into_ the mansion is this way. Trust me." She watched me for a minute, then shook her head and followed me off to the side. Before long we came to a patch of woods that was familiar to me, and I smiled at her again before kicking at the undergrowth. "Found it," I told her, and pulled a green gem from the forest floor. She gave me a quizzical look, but I shook my head at her, telling her to wait for the explanation. With a huge leap, I landed on the upper branches of a nondescript looking tree, and placed my gem there in the way of what looked like moonlight. Like magic, a green light shot from the branch to the inside of the tree and down into the darkness of its hollowed trunk. I jumped back down to stand beside Wanda as she was still looking at the tree.

"What did you just do?" she asked me.

"It's a signal, for those who're lookin' for it. Green is me, to Tabby. Others use it though, it's for inter-mutant relationships that people don't want public. Red is for Lance, which Kitty comes out for usually, and purple is for Amanda, who used to bring out Nightcrawler. That's all I know, but there are different colors over there. I don't know whose they are. Anyways, Tabby'll be out in a minute, 'n she'll take us through the back way."

"And the professor doesn't know about this?" she asked incredulously. I shrugged.

"The dude's a mind reader. Who knows what he hears in our heads. Either way, it's never failed unless the person on the inside chooses not to come out."

"Where does the light go on the inside?" she asked. "The professor, or someone else, would have seen it before now it if were prominent."

"Na, it's not a huge beacon or anything, yo. Just a little light that only those who're lookin' for it will see. I think Forge made it, with help from the others, but I'm not sure. I just use it, I didn't make it…..wait," I told her, straining my ears to hear something. There was a rustling off to my left, and the sound of hinges. "Someone's coming, I'm pretty sure it's Tabs."

"Toad?" I heard Tabby call through the night.

"Over here," I called back. Sure enough, Tabby came into view.

"What're you doing out here this early? Do you know what time it is?" she asked, but then her eyes fell on my companion. "Wanda? What the hell?"

"Tabby, we don't have a lot of time," I told her as I stepped forward and took her hand. "I need you to do me a huge favor." Her eyes went from Wanda to me, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Uh, sure?" she said, still uncertain of the situation.

"We need to talk to the professor. Now. It can't wait. Can you get us in, and to him?"

"Why? What happened?" she asked, but I shook my head.

"No time. Just know that it's big, and we need his help. I promise I'll explain everything else later, I just can't right now." Tabby hesitated for a minute, but then Wanda chimed in.

"Tabitha, I know that we've never really talked, but it's important. I wouldn't be here, asking you, if it weren't." Tabby looked up at her, then back to me, then sighed.

"If I get another early morning Logan session because of this, I'll kill you both," she said half-heartedly before turning around and beckoning us to follow her. She reopened the passage way with a hand scan and led us through the winding tunnel that led up into a closet of the mansion. Once there, she opened the door to make sure it was clear, then lead us down a hallway with red carpet and through two oak doors until we reached one that she stopped at. "This is his study. He's almost always in here, no matter what time it is. Or maybe he's only here when we need him. Huh." That thought seemed to perplex her for a bit, but then she shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, he'll be in there." Wanda hesitated at the door, then looked back at me. I could tell that she was scared to ask the help of the professor, but knew she didn't have a choice. Things had gotten out of hand and were way too far above her head for her to handle on her own now. I put my hand in hers, and she offered me a small smile in return. Tabby gave me a quizzical look, and I only shrugged. Wanda inhaled deeply, then knocked softly on the door. There was no reply, so she turned to look at Tabby who shrugged. I could tell Wanda was about to turn away, but then we heard a noise from inside.

"It's alright Wanda, you may come in." Both she and I jumped at the address, but Tabby just smiled. 'Told you' she mouthed to me, and Wanda opened the door. The professor had a book open on his desk, reading it by the light of a desk lamp with a cup of something steaming next to him. "Ah, Tabitha. Thank you for helping these two find their way. But if I'm not mistaken, you have school early in the morning, and I wouldn't want Logan to find you out of bed at this hour."

"Yeah, thanks professor!" she told him. She turned and gave me a meaningful look signifying that she expected to be given a fully detailed explanation later, and then she was gone.

"Wanda, Toad, would you like to take a seat?" he asked as he indicated the two chairs in front of him. She looked at me, and I shrugged, so we both took a chair. "Now, what is it that tore you from bed at this hour?" he asked.

"Uh, can't you just pull it from our heads or somethin'?" I blurted, then blushed and looked down as he fixed his eyes on me.

"Yes Toad, it is true I do possess the ability to enter someone's mind, but I usually refrain from doing so as a personal curtsey to those around me. I would prefer people choose to relay information to me directly, rather than to go fishing around in someone's thoughts."

"Oh," I said brilliantly and clasped my hands together between my knees. The professor returned his gaze to Wanda who seemed tense. Again I put my hand on hers, which seemed to give her some kind of comfort.

"Well," she started slowly, not sure what to start with. "I got a tip from someone that Magneto has intentions to come after me. Tonight. Actually at any second. And I also have information that tells me that he can, and plans, to take my mutant ability and give it to someone else, which would kill me," she told him bluntly. The professor's eyebrows knitted together.

"It is unusual that Eric would seek to destroy a mutant life. You have this information from a good source?" he asked her, and she nodded.

"A good enough source for me to trust it, sir." This seemed to trouble the professor, as he leaned back in his chair and put on hand to his chin in thought.

"I see. And you came here seeking sanctuary?"

"Well, I'm not sure why I came here. I didn't have a lot of time to plan. I just know that here is temporarily safe for me, at least until I can figure things out." I was absolutely amazed at how calm and reasonable Wanda sounded, especially with all of the history she had with this man, but then I realized that might have been why. All those years that Magneto had her locked up, she had been meeting with the professor. She already knew how to address him, and had fallen back into that routine.

"This is, indeed, a troubling and pressing matter. However, I do agree with you Wanda. Your presence here my sty Magneto's imminent attack, and perhaps it will give me just enough time to have a private conversation with him."

"You mean you could talk to him 'n get him not to come after Wanda?" I asked him. He looked at me, but it was with a faraway look in his eyes.

"I can give no promises on the outcome of our meeting. Eric has always had a different agenda, and has never been very susceptible to others attempting to bring reason to his plans. However, I will do my best to persuade him to do otherwise. In the meantime, you may make yourself at home here."

"Thank you, professor," Wanda said, though she fidgeted as she said it and bit her lip. It didn't take a mind reader to understand she was worried about being in the same house as the x-men.

"I understand your apprehension about the others that live here, but you should give them the benefit of the doubt. I'm willing to bet that if you give them time, and perhaps a smile or two, things will change rather quickly." Wanda still seemed reserved, but nodded. "As long as you refrain from starting conflict, I trust that there will be none. That goes for both of you," he said, lowering his chin to give me a look. I knew what he was referring to. The first time I had come to this mansion, it hadn't ended so well. I blushed, but nodded my agreement.

"Understood," she told him, and we both stood.

"Tabitha," the professor said, which had both Wanda and I startled. Tabby then walked into the room, shame-faced. "I see you've had some trouble finding your room. Perhaps you could take Wanda with you this time? And Todd can have one of the guest rooms on the boy's corridor."

"Yes professor," Tabby told him. He smiling knowingly at her, and nodded at all of us in dismissal.


	10. Chapter 10

Wanda shut the door behind us, and Tabby turned to face us both. It was clear she had heard everything, and was wondering if it was true. I nodded at her, and she let out a breath. "Wow. Talk about crazy. Well, c'mon I'll take you to where you're supposed to go."

"Wait," Wanda said, biting her lip. "Can we make one quick stop first? I made a promise to someone…" she trailed off, but I knew she was talking about her promise to Lance. Tabby gave her a puzzled look. "Can you show me to Kitty's room?"

"Kitty's room? Why?" Tabby asked her.

"Lance drove us here, 'n it's what he asked for in return," I told her. She rolled her eyes, but didn't seem surprised.

"Yeah ok, she's in the same hall as us anyways. Except for you Toad; you'll be to the right when Wanda and I have to take a left here in a sec," she said as she started walking down the hallway to the right of the professor's study. We didn't say much as we walked, both from all of us being exhausted from need of sleep, and from not really knowing what to say. Finally we arrived at where I was supposed to depart from them, but Wanda stopped me by putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Could you come with me, just to talk to Kitty?" she asked me.

"Kitty doesn't like me any more 'n she likes you," I responded. "Or Tabby for that matter," I added when Tabs smirked.

"I know," Wanda sighed. "But I'd feel better, all the same." I shrugged and followed them down the hall to a door that Tabby knocked on. We waited a few minutes, but no one answered. Tabby knocked again, and again there was silence. I closed my eyes and tuned up my hearing ability, to sense if there was anyone in the room. I listened for breathing, a heartbeat, any movement at all and found none.

"No one's in there, yo."

"Whadda you mean? She's gotta be in there, no way she'd be up this early." Tabby swung the door open to reveal what I had already predicted; an empty room.

"Where would she be?" asked Wanda, and for a minute Tabby looked confused. Then, something darker crossed her face.

"Oh," she said, and yanked the door shut as she turned back to face us. "I know where she is alright. I shoulda guessed." She jerked her head down the hallway that I was supposed to have taken, the one with the guy's rooms. Wanda looked confused; she wasn't used to being kept in the loop with everyone's love triangles. She had spent so much time dwelling on only Magneto that she never bothered to get involved with those around her. Me on the other hand, I knew that Kitty would be with Nightcrawler in his room, and I knew why Tabby looked so bitter.

"Maybe we should jus' leave it for now, 'n talk to her in the morning," I suggested. Tabby had her arms crossed over her chest, trying to look angry in an attempt to hide the hurt I knew she was feeling. Wanda on the other hand just looked confused. Before she could say anything, Tabby interjected.

"No, we should talk to her now. You made a promise, didn't you Wanda? 'N a girl has got to keep to her word. C'mon I know which room she's in." With that she stomped in the opposite direction. Wanda and I hesitated, but then she started to follow Tabs.

"Uh-oh," I said under my breath, knowing this wasn't about to be a great conversation. It was too short of a walk for my taste before we were standing in the boy's corridor with Tabby banging on one of the doors. We heard noises from inside, but Tabby only gave them a second before she popped one of her explosives in the key hole which blew the door in.

"Oops," she said, leaning against the door frame. "Hey Kitty, got someone here who needs to talk to you," she said dryly. There was a squeal from the dark room as Kitty lunged to wrap a white sheet around her, and a poof of blue smoke that resulted in Nightcrawler disappearing.

"What the fuck Tabitha! Like, what the hell is wrong with you?" Kitty demanded as she finished wrapping herself in the sheet and stood up. Tabby gave her a wolfish grin.

"Well, we couldn't find you in your room, so I came to the next logical place," she said innocently but there was a bite in her voice. Kitty was about to fire something back, but then the plural of 'we' hit her, and she looked past Tabby to spot Wanda and I.

"The Brotherhood is here?" she exclaimed and lurched backwards, I guess expecting some kind of attack from us.

"No, stupid," Tabby chastised her. "Just Wanda and Toad, and they're here under Professor X's protection. Wanda needs to talk to you." Tabby flicked on the light, which caused Kitty to blink and put her hand up.

"Wanda…? What's_ she _doing here? And this couldn't have, like, waited until tomorrow?" she demanded angrily.

"No," Wanda said coldly, stepping up before Tabitha could come up of a retort of her own. "It couldn't. The only reason I'm doing this is for Lance, not you, you should know that." Kitty's eyes widened at Lance's name, but Wanda didn't let her say anything. "He has information about something big that Magneto's planning, and it's not good. He said it's going to get ugly for everyone. For some reason, he offered you protection, if you want it. He said that if things get out of hand, for you to leave some symbol in 'your spot,' and that he'd come get you out as soon as you did. He said he would protect you." Kitty soaked all of this in, then brought her eyebrows together.

"Fine, I got your message, now get out," she told us. Wanda glowered at her, which made Kitty take a step back and inhale in surprise.

"I don't know why Lance is offering you this chance, when it goes against his own protection and probably violates Magneto's own commands, but he did it for you. I don't pretend to understand why he loves a selfish little brat like you, but he does. He cares more about you than you will ever know, and you throw that away like it's nothing. He's risked his life countless times for you, and still you discard him like he's trash. Get your shit together, and clear the stars out of those little eyes of yours. He's better than you deserve." With that Wanda slammed the door behind her, leaving Kitty alone with those words. Both Tabby and I were openly gawking at her. "What?" she demanded of us.

"It's just…" Tabby started, then looked at me to finish.

"Well, we didn't know…well that _you_ knew, about any of that. Let alone that you cared." Wanda sighed and shrugged one shoulder.

"I'm not stupid, and I _do_ have eyes and ears. Lance risked everything to bring both of us here tonight, and I don't pretend to think that it was for us. It was the only way to make sure that his message would get to Kitty. It says a lot. And…well… I guess I know what a bitch move it is, to ignore someone like that." Her sapphire eyes found mine, and instantly I forgot how to bring air into my lungs. She offered me a gentle smile and I felt my heart melt into a puddle.

"Wow," I heard Tabby say, which had both Wanda and I looking at her. Instead of answering our unspoken question, she shook her head at us. "Never mind. Uh, Toad? The guest room is the last one on the right," she said, turning to gesture behind her and point her finger at a specific door. "I'll take Wanda to my room. I've had an extra bed ever since Amara got her own room. We'll be great roomies," she told me with a wink. Wanda looked uneasy, but I smiled at her.

"It'll be ok," I told her. "Tabby's room is prob'ly one of the safest ones here: no one wants to prank someone who could blow them up, or get 'em back a-hundred times worse," I reasoned which had Tabby beaming. She could tell that Wanda still had hesitations though, so she looked between the two of us before taking a few steps back.

"Uh, I'll wait at the end of the hall if you guys need ta talk or anything," she said and I gave her a grateful look. We waited until she was out of ear shot, then Wanda stepped towards me so that she could lower her voice even further.

"Toad," she started in a worried tone so I took her hand in mine. She looked down at this action, seemingly still getting used to it, then back up to me. "Do you trust this?" she asked me.

"The mansion is the safest place for you right now. It's our best bet. And Tabs…I trust her with my life. 'N she knows how much you mean to me. I wouldn't have picked anyone else to watch over you, if I can't do it myself." Wanda frowned at this, and I rolled my eyes. Her pride was such a touchy thing. "I _know_ you can watch out for yourself, yo. But it makes me feel better that Tabs has your back, just in case." That seemed to satisfy her as she let out an exhale and relaxed her shoulders. "Now go get some rest." I went to turn around, but she tightened her hold on my hand which stopped me.

"Toad?" I looked up at her, and she seemed shy for a minute. "Um. Thank you."

"For what?" I asked her, tilting my head to the side.

"For…well, everything. For staying with me, for always being there… you didn't have to come here. You could have stayed at the House, it was safe for you there. Much safer than it is here." I knew I wasn't one of the x-men's favorite people, but I shrugged.

"I told you Wanda; I'm yours. I'm with you for as long as you'll have me, wherever that takes me. I don't care where I am, as long as I'm there with you." I meant it as a simple fact of truth, but she was blinking quickly like I had said something that hit home with her. An instant later her full, red lips were bushing against mine which shut down any thought process I had going at the moment. My throat closed in an attempt to suffocate me and the puddle that had been my heart felt like it had melted into ice that dripped down into my stomach and froze there. Too soon she was pulling away, and I tried to force the fog out of my brain so that I could make my mouth work.

"Thank you, again," she was telling me as she let go and retreated a few steps. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Mhhhm," was all I was able to respond with, since words weren't yet accessible to my misty mind. Before I could start breathing normally again, both she and Tabby were gone, down their hall and in Tabby's room, leaving me standing alone in the hallway still feeling the impression her lips had left on mine. I let out a wistful sigh and turned to enter my room, crashing on a bed that I barely noticed and closing my eyes. The last thing I thought before I drifted off to sleep was _Please don't let this all be a dream. _


	11. Chapter 11

I couldn't let him get to her. No matter what happened, no matter what the cost, I couldn't let him get to her. He would destroy her. Her; the thing I cared about above all else, the one thing in this world that I truly loved. I couldn't let him get to her, but she was so far out of my reach, getting father every second. Soon she would fade entirely from view. No, I couldn't let that happen. I had to bring her back to me. I had to keep her safe. I struggled to reach up to her, to fight to get far enough up that I could be by her side as her protector, but the more I struggled, the farther away she became. Within seconds, she disappeared completely. No! Wanda! _Wanda!_

"Wanda!" I shouted and bolted straight up in the bed I had been thrashing around in. The blankets were strewn about and all the pillows had been thrown to the floor. My heart was still hammering, and I felt a cold sweat beading my body.

"You too?" a voice asked, and I jumped violently. Wanda was sitting in the window seat of my room, looking at me worriedly. Bright sunlight was streaming in through the window behind her, telling me it was at least noon. I let out an exhale and tried to relax, reminding myself that it was just a dream. The problem was that the dream had faded, but the nightmare still remained. Magneto was real, and he was coming after her. Even worse, I had no idea how to stop it from happening. Wanda must have seen my thoughts on my face because she came over to me and sat next to me on the bed. "I'm here, Toad," she told me gently. I wondered if she would reject to me touching her, but I was so shaken by the feelings I was experiencing that I had to make sure she was real. I slipped my hand into hers, and she let me.

"I hope you slept better 'n I did," I told her, but I knew by the look in her eyes that she hadn't. It must have been worse than I thought because she closed her eyes and laid her head on my shoulder.

"The professor isn't back yet," she told me which answered my unspoken question. "He, Scott and Logan left this morning with the jet."

"He'll be back," I told her gently. Neither of us moved for a long time, choosing instead to take all we could from each other's presence. I wondered if I could have stopped this, if there was anything I could have done to prevent it. Was there? None of us knew what Magneto had been planning. None of us knew to what extent he would go when he felt threatened. But I knew what he was capable of. I should have known he'd have some atrocious back up plan in case the memory-stealing didn't work. I should have done _something_. Maybe I could have stopped Tabby from helping Wanda regain her memories. If she had stayed blissfully ignorant… But I knew that was a lie. Tabby said she had been seeking answers long before they had teamed up. Wanda had known something wasn't right with her perfect world.

"What are you thinking about?" Wanda asked me, pulling me from my thoughts.

"If you could, would you go back? I mean to believing in the happy family picture." She was quiet as she thought about it, then pulled her head off of my shoulder to sit up straight. She looked at me for a bit, then away.

"No," she said finally. "I wouldn't. The idea of it was nice; having a father that had always loved me, all of the terrible memories washed away, replaced with good ones. I wasn't afraid anymore, because I couldn't remember what there was to be scared or angry about. But it just... I don't know. It felt…ugly. Wrong. Like I was living in a movie, but not reality. Even though I didn't have the memories, I still had these emotions that I couldn't understand. And the nightmares were terrible. No, I wouldn't go back. No matter what happens, I know the truth now. Living like this is better than living a lie." She stopped and looked up at me again. A faint ghost of a smile lit her lips, and her eyes lightened just a shade before she continued. "Besides, there are some things that I'm beginning to like on this side, things that probably never would have happened if I had stayed in the dark." A gentle hand came up slowly, as if unsure at first, then was cautiously placed on my cheek. I smiled at her, and she gave me a smile in return. But, as always, the moment wasn't allowed to last.

The door to the room I was staying in burst open to reveal that annoying kid, the one who could make duplicates of himself. His eyes widened to an impossibly large size as his jaw dropped.

"It's true!" he shouted.

"Jamie, get outta there!" I heard Tabby shout, and he was promptly the target of one of her explosives. He dodged, but just barely.

"Kitty said they were here! I just wanted to see," he whined. Wanda dropped her hand and scowled. I knew she wanted to do something, but was under strict rules to not antagonize any of the x-men. We all knew that all it would take was one mishap to dredge up old memories along with old grudges. Wanda had been the biggest threat against them, and the one reason they had ever lost to the Brotherhood. That had to hurt their pride still on some level, which they could easily take out on her now. There was a knock on the door frame before Tabby peaked her head in.

"Good ta see you're both up. Uh, sorry about Multiple, he's just a little stupid sometimes." Wanda just shrugged in response, though chose to stand as well and I followed in suit. "If you guys wanna grab something ta eat, I'll show you were the kitchen is," she offered.

"That's a nice way of saying we're to be escorted everywhere we go, in case we feel like snooping or picking a fight," Wanda remarked dryly. Tabby crossed her arms and jutted her right hip out, a move I was well familiar with by now; she was pouting.

"Now that's not fair. Professor X said you're our guests, 'n you should be treated as such. I just wanna show you around." Her arms dropped, and with them so did her act. "And, well. Maybe it might help the others to see us together, ya know, _not_ tryin' to rip each other apart. Look, just think of me as your insider's tour guide to mutant mansion."

"Y'know, not that you mention it, food does sound pretty good," I said. I knew Wanda would be feeling the same way too. Tabby stepped out of the door way and held out a flourished arm to the left, indication which direction we should go.

"Next stop: Kitchen! By the way, how did you sleep?" she asked Wanda.

"You snore," Wanda said in a mild voice. Tabby's face scrunched up as we headed off to the kitchen.

"I do not! Toad, tell her I don't!" Tabby demanded. My eyes shifted from Tabby to Wanda and back. Tabs just rolled her eyes and threw one arm over each of us.

"Look, we can't go getting all awkward now, we were having such a nice time. We should get this out of the way right now before it gets any bigger."

"Tabby-" I started. I knew where she was going with this, and I knew exactly how blunt she could be. She cut me off before I could get any farther, saying the exact thing I was hoping to avoid.

"Let's put this out in the open, so we can all get over it. Everyone knows Toad and I used to get together sometimes. Everyone also knows the _reasons_ we got together, right Wanda?" Wanda didn't look any more pleased than I felt with the subject. What Wanda and I had at the moment was still all up in the air, I wasn't sure what this conversation would do to it. I didn't even know if Wanda was the jealous type. She never spent time on any type of relationship before, not that I knew about anyways.

"Tabitha, what are you getting at?" Wanda asked her in a tired voice.

"We should all just accept everything that has happened, and that is happening, and move on with it," Tabby said cheerfully. "I'm happy for you, Toad. Seeing you with Wanda just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside, like no matter what happens, there can always be a happy ending."

"And now what will you do?" Wanda asked Tabby pointedly. I flinched, not liking the way this conversation was going at all.

"What, now that I'm out a fuck buddy?" Tabby asked her.

"Tabs!" I protested, but she only shook her head.

"I'm being honest. Honesty is the best policy. And I don't like sugar coating things, it takes way too much effort. And she has a valid question Toad. I don't really have an answer to that, actually. But I will. And you should know that no matter what, I'll respect you and Toad and, well, whatever the fuck you have goin' on." All three of us stopped just outside of the kitchen doors as Wanda met Tabby's eyes.

"I can have your word on that?" she asked seriously. Tabby also dropped all pretenses and met her gaze with a straight face and honest eyes. After a second she gave Wanda a knowing smile, and took her hand in her own.

"Wanda, you know the reason Toad and I got together in the first place, don't you?" Of course she did. Tabby was right; _everyone_ did. Gossip was like gold to people. "All he ever wanted was you. Why would he ever go back to the substitute when he has you?"

"Tabby," I said but she shook her head. I hated to hear her talk about herself like that. Wanda never broke eye contact with her, which meant neither of them could see the green blush I felt crawling across my face.

"I know. And I trust him. But I do appreciate you stepping down for me. It's very mature, Tabitha. You should know I think the world of you for handling matters this way. And I realize it was my fault he came to you in the first place. But I'm glad that he did. He has a great friend in you." What? I was so lost. Weren't women supposed to be petty, backstabbing and mean? Well, I guess normally, but these two women were definitely _not _what anyone would deem 'normal.'

"I'd like to remain his friend, if you'd let that happen. He means more to me than most would guess, and I'd hate to lose that because you saw me as a threat. I'd like to stay in this loop, if you wouldn't mind," Tabby said. I was astonished at how open and genuine they were both being. I would have never guessed that two people could interact this way about such a touchy subject. Just goes to show, I really know how to pick 'em.

"I'd like that too, Tabby," Wanda told her with a smile. "Toad has good taste." Tabby beamed at her, and pulled us both in to a giant bear hug. Wanda tensed up at first, but then slowly melted into it.

"That he does! Now Toad, would you tell her I don't snore?" she asked again as she let go of the two of us.

"Actually Tabby, you kinda do, yo." She frowned at me, and I put my hands up in defense. "Hey! Didn't you just say honesty is the best policy?"

"Well some things are best kept to yourself," she retorted back to me before pushing open the door to the kitchen. Wanda and I stopped short as we saw what we walked into. Kitty, Jean and Rogue were all leaning on or against the wooden table in the center of the room, with Nightcrawler dangling from the ceiling and Spike was in the corner going through the cupboards. Tabby, however, continued walking on normally, as if we hadn't just walking into a bomb about to explode. There's a certain feeling, when you come upon a group of people who were just talking about you and become dead silent when you happen upon them; I was definitely feeling it. By the rigidness in Wanda, I could tell she was too. "Spike, would you hand me one of those bowls?" Tabby was asking him.

"Why? Are one of those two losers gonna use it?" he asked acidly, never once tearing his eyes from us. Tabby crossed her arms over her chest and scowled at him.

"You know that the professor pardoned them, right? And you know that they're here as his _guests_, right? So why don't you show a little hospitality and hand me one of those fuckin' bowls already?" Spike clenched his jaw but did as she asked, all without ever looking away from Wanda or me. "I swear, people can be so childish sometimes!" Tabby said exasperatedly as she yanked the bowl from Spike's hand. "Wanda, Toad, you can come help yourself. I may be the tour guide, but I'm not your maid or your mother: feed yourself. Anything that's labeled, don't eat. Other than that, it's up for grabs."

"Well, it just got a little too crowded for me in here. I'm out," Kitty said and she straightened.

"Don't let the door hitcha on the way out," Rogue drawled and Nightcrawler also chose to _bamf_ out. She stood up, but instead of leaving came over to where we were and helped herself to a bagel as we sorted through the cupboards. I had ever seen anything like it. There was so much _food_! None of it was spoiled, or rotten or even gross-looking. The pantry in the House was almost always empty, and when it wasn't ,that was even worse because there was no guessing on what was molding on those shelves. "Here, trah this," Rogue said as she offered a muffin to Wanda with a smile. Wanda looked at it cautiously, then up at Rogue. "It's not gonna bitecha." Wanda moved slowly, but took it from Rogue and took a bite. I was trying to figure out why Wanda would be so standoffish with Rogue, but didn't really care at that point because I had toast of my own as well as a danish in one hand and a glass of milk in the other.

"Thanks," Wanda said quietly. She still seemed to have every nerve buzzing. Rogue sighed and leaned against the counter top.

"Look, ah'm sorry 'bout havin' ta steal your power before. But that was a long time ago, 'n ah wasn't exactly in mah right mind. I wouldn't have done it at all if ah had been," Rogue said. Oh, that made more sense. I remembered when she had grabbed Wanda's face and knocked her out to steal her power and take it to Apocalypse.

"Ha, close one, yo," I said without thinking. Both women looked at me. "What?" I asked with a mouth full of now cereal. "It was." Rogue shook her head and looked back at Wanda.

"Differences set aside, ah know yah could use some extra help 'round here. Tabby can't keep ya outta trouble all the time. Ah'd like ta help, if you'd let me."

"Why?" asked Wanda. Rogue just shrugged.

"Let's jus' say ah know what it's like, ta be in a place where it's not exactly friendly territory."

"Psh, don't we all," said Tabby as she sat down beside me to polish off a can of yogurt. Rogue offered a gloved hand out to Wanda with a small smile.

"Yah up fer a ride?" she asked. Wanda watched her for a minute, before taking Rogue's offered hand in her own.

"I sort of have to be," she admitted with a small smile of her own. By now I was sure word of Wanda's predicament would be known by all. Word spread like wildfire around here.

"Hey, guys," said Jean, whom I had totally forgotten about during the whole exchange and of course the distraction of real food. All four of us turned to look at her. She had her right hand to her temple and her eyes closed, which meant she was doing that psychic thing of hers. Instantly my thoughts felt unsafe. "The professor's back. He's requesting that Wanda and Toad meet him as soon as you can in his study." She put her hand down and looked up, fixing her emerald eyes on all of us. Wanda stood up straight and locked her own eyes on Jean's.

"And what about you, Jean," Wanda asked. "Are you taking a side on all of this?" Jean's face remained totally calm, which made me wonder what she was thinking about. Or even worse, whose thoughts she was digging through. Did she carry the same generous outlook as the professor, or did she claw through people's minds just for the fun of it? Her eyes flitted from Wanda to me, then to Tabby and Rogue, finally resting on Wanda.

"I reserve judgment," Jean said coolly. "Now, the professor does need to speak with you. I would suggest finding your way there sooner rather than later." I stood up as Wanda nodded, and all four of us finished up whatever we were eating before departing. Wanda slipped her hand into mine as we walked, letting me know how nervous she was about what the professor had to say. I gave it a slight squeeze and offered her a smile which she tried to return. Tabby and Rogue were talking about something in front of us as they lead the way, which allowed Wanda and I to remain silent in our mutual worry.

"Here ya go," Tabby said as we arrived at a familiar double door which I now knew as the professor's study. "We'll be out here when you're done," she told us with a bright smile.

"Thanks," I told both her and Rogue, who just nodded and opened the door, closing it behind us as we entered. The professor was there, behind his desk as he had been so early this morning. We were alone again, which made me wonder where Scott and Wolverine were.

"Wanda, Toad. Good to see you. Have a seat," he said, and we did as he bid. "I trust things have been going well for you?" he inquired.

"As well as could be expected," Wanda admitted, to which he nodded his understanding.

"Good. I'm sure things will get better as time progresses." Wanda furrowed her brow at this, catching the implied meaning that we were both going to be spending more time here.

"Did you talk to him?" she asked. Her hands clasped together in apprehension, though she showed none of it on her face. The professor sighed and put his arm on the desk.

"I did." The way he said it made me guess that Magneto wasn't too happy that the professor was shielding the imminent target of his newest attack.

"And?" Wanda asked. The professor looked at her gently, but I could tell there was sorrow in his eyes.

"He is bent on his plans. Nothing I said would sway him. He was very clear that if you were ever to step out of my protection and pursue him as you have been recently, he would retaliate with the actions you so feared."

"Does that mean she's safe?" I asked, drawing his eyes to me to give Wanda time to process this. "I mean, as long as she's here, with you doin' your x-men sh-…stuff, then she's safe. Right? Magneto won't attack one of yours, would he?" The professor shook his head and leaned back in his chair.

"No. He unwillingly obliged to my demands that if you were to remain here and study under me, as I originally wished you to, then he would stop his plans immediately and treat you as just another x-man." Wanda's eyes were hard, and her voice was dark.

"So I'd have to stay here, a prisoner of the x-men, to save my life from my own father?" she demanded.

"Wanda, don't look at it like that. I've always wanted you to have a place here among my students. I think you could learn much from what we have to offer you here, and it would greatly benefit you."

"And all I'd have to do is learn to play well with others," she said darkly.

"I've seen your progress from your time with the Brotherhood. You've learned a vast amount of self control, as well as experiencing interaction with a team of other mutants your same age. I hope to build on the foundation to help you realize your full potential as not only a mutant, but as a human being. And you, Todd," he said, turning to look at me "are more than welcome to remain here as well. However, Magneto has no ill will towards you, so your choice is a bit different."

"I go where she does," I told him without hesitation. He seemed to expect that, and nodded his approval.

"I'm not saying that you must decide this matter right now. You may have as much time as you'd like," he told us.

"It's not like there's a real choice," Wanda spat bitterly. "Leave, and I forfeit my life to Magneto as he slowly leeches it away through my power. Stay and live, but I'll be forced to become and x-man and fight for yet another cause that I don't care about. I don't want to be on any _team_!" she exclaimed. "I just want to be my own person, free from all of this. I don't want to do any more fighting, not for you, not for Mystique, and definitely not for Magneto! I just want to live my own life, without having to look over my shoulder."

"I understand that Wanda, and I do wish I could give it to you. In time, perhaps this goal could be realized. But as for right now, the circumstances are very narrow. I've done everything I can to insure your safety but ultimately the choice is yours." Wanda sat silently for a moment longer, refusing to look at anyone.

"Couldn't you have mind-told him to leave her alone?" I asked as she mulled over her choice. The professor shook his head.

"It's extremely unethical, as well as against my personal morals, to interfere with someone's free will. That's part of the natural law of life, and I won't impede that freedom. Even if I had wanted to do such a deed, Magneto has gone to great lengths to ensure his thoughts, his will and his mind as a whole is shielded from my ability at all times." He gave Wanda a few more moments of silence before speaking again. "Wanda, you know you do not have to make this choice now. There are other pressing details I must attend to though. When you do come upon an answer-"

"I'll do it," she said, interrupting him. She turned to look him square in the face, her expression letting him know she wasn't happy about the choice she had made, but she had made one.

"You've made your decision?" he asked her, and also looked at her to make sure she was serious. She didn't even flinch.

"I'll become and x-man."


	12. Chapter 12

The first week was the hardest. Obvious sides were drawn, creating a not-so-silent war between those who welcomed us, and those who still harbored resentment for the old rivalry. Leading those against us were Nightcrawler and Kitty, but they were closely followed by almost everyone else. Those on our side were restricted to Tabby, Rogue, Amara and Jubilee. The adults like Storm, Beast and Wolverine were all on the professor's side, which meant they stayed out of either protecting or ostracizing us. I was glad that Wanda got to keep her shared room with Tabby; it sheltered her from a lot of the underhanded pranks. Since I was in my own room, I got the brunt of them. Mud above doors, showers turning to ice, things disappearing or being left halfway in a wall…..it seemed to never end. I was used to this kind of treatment; I'd been getting it almost all of my life. Even from normal human kids. It was Wanda I was worried about. No matter what happened, we could never fight back. It would start an all out war that would probably end in her being kicked out to fend for herself against Magneto.

By the second week though, the teachers figured we had better start learning how to work with one another. That's when we started to be included in the danger room sessions. The good side was that the other x-men couldn't openly do anything against us there. The stakes were too high, and the teachers would jump down their throats if anything life threatening was directed at either Wanda or me. The bad thing was that there were plenty of 'accidents' that could have been avoided. Luckily Wanda was on top of her game, since she was always able to manipulate anything they threw at her to her advantage. Much to their dismay, they were making her stronger. Still, there were some who didn't approve of the way we were handling these sessions.

"Wanda!" called Logan through the loudspeaker for the millionth time. "You can't spend your whole life watching only you. You have to become part of the team, and watch their backs as well!" he chastised.

"Maybe that'd be a bit _easier_ if I knew they weren't out to put a knife through mine," Wanda muttered just loud enough for me to hear. A giant metal arm was headed towards Rogue, but before it could snatch her I slimed it shut. It still tried to shoot a beam of red light at her, but my goop was strong enough that it stayed shut and imploded on itself. She turned to see what had happened and smiled at me. Wanda let out an exasperated sigh, then turned her eyes to the whole picture. I stayed with my plan of just watching out myself, Wanda, Tabby and Rogue. I was able to keep most of the attacks off of us while they fired back in their own way. I wasn't much of an offensive mutant, but I did some great defense. A sweeping line of red was dragging across the floor towards Jubilee, so I launched myself across the exact 9 feet and seven inches I knew lay between us, wrapped my arms around her, then jumped as high as I could to let the red light sweep under us harmlessly.

"Thanks!" she said breathlessly as we landed again.

"Don't mention it, yo," I told her before she took off, shooting lights into some other mechanical being that was going after Jean. As I watched this, I realized that we were losing. Again. We had yet to win a danger room session, and I was beginning to wonder if they ever had even before we got here. Almost everyone was put on defensive now, the only two left attacking were Spike and Wanda. Spike, however, was quickly surrounded by spiked walls that were closing in on him. I was content to leave it be, but Wanda felt a change of heart.

With a snarl not only her hands but her whole arms glowed a brilliant blue as she raised them, holding her two middle fingers down with her thumb on both hands, and threw them first to the left with one step towards Spike, them to the right as she took another step. The metal walls were tossed aside like styrofoam, leaving Spike standing there in awe. A floating orb had ghosted up behind Wanda, but before I could slime it down, it was shot away by a red beam from Cyclops. Since I had been watching this, I hadn't been paying attention. A solid bar of metal slammed into my back and pinned my against the wall, but only for a few seconds before Rogue used Kitty's power to phase me out. Wanda brought two glowing hands together, which smashed two whirling arms that sparked with electricity together, which resulted in both of them shorting out before they could touch Wolfsbane. I grabbed onto another bar of metal that was headed for Sunspot and leaped as far to the left as I could, taking it with me and using its own momentum to throw it into a wall. Things were looking good, until something heavy snaked its way around my entire body, head to toe, and _squeezed._ I felt like I was going to pop from the pressure as dark spots swam through my vision. Tabby went to throw explosives at it, but was knocked down and pinned to the ground before she could do anything. Rogue turned to throw something at it, but she too was snatched from the floor and captured by one of the giant metal arms. Just as I felt consciousness drifting from me, I heard a shout.

"Toad!" was the agonizing scream, then everything turned an eye-smarting shade of sapphire. Everything mechanical stopped in its tracks. Within the same second, everything that wasn't human was ripped from its position and smashed into the walls. I was dropped and air rushed back into my lungs, trying to replace the vacuum they had become just seconds ago. Every bone in my body ached, but I was fine. Everyone was, thanks to Wanda. The whole room was no longer operational, even the lights were flickering.

"Whoa," I heard more than one person say. Wanda paid them no attention; instead she came over to help me up with a worried look in her eyes.

"You ok?" she asked as I straightened and winced.

"Yeah. Yeah I'm fine, thanks to you," I told her and smiled at her. "What was that?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"I…I don't know." She went to say more, but then must have felt the eyes of everyone else on her back. She turned around to catch them all gaping it her and crossed her arms. "What?" she asked.

"Wanda…you just took out _the whole danger room_," Amara told her.

"Like that's never happened before? There's a whole team of mutants shoved in here every day, it can't be that uncommon," Wanda replied. Silence. Before it could get any more awkward, Logan's voice came over the loudspeaker again.

"Well, guess that's a wrap. Hit the showers. Meet me in the entry hall after dinner for a team meeting." I didn't wait for a second invitation. I took Wanda's hand and lead her out of the staring eyes of the other x-men and back to her shared room.

"Maybe now the others will lay off us, huh?" I joked with her as we rounded the last corner. She just shrugged, but looked worried. As soon as we were safe in the room, I turned to face her. "So you gonna tell me what that was?" I asked. Again, she just shrugged.

"Look, I was telling the truth before. I really don't know," she said. She went to look out the window, but seemed to change her mind mid-course and went to sit on the bed.

"Well, what _do_ you know 'bout it? 'Cause I've never seen you do anything like that before. You manipulated everything Wanda, not just one or two things. And you didn't even look at any of them. You didn't even move your hands!"

"Toad, I really don't know, ok?" I sighed as she said this, and went to sit next to her. I slid my hand into hers which made her turn her face to look at me.

"I'm just impressed, yo. That's all. You're growing so much, 'n so quickly I can't even keep up." I put my free hand to her cheek, cupping her face with it. She closed her eyes and pressed her face into my hand for a moment before pulling out of it.

"I know. Well, I guess I know now. Kind of. I surprised myself in there," she admitted to me.

"You didn't do it on purpose?" I asked. She shook her head.

"No. I mean, I was doing everything else on purpose. Then, I saw that you were in trouble and…I got scared."

"Scared?" I asked incredulously. "Scared of what?" A slight color rose to her cheeks, and she looked away from me.

"I don't know. Hey we better get going, or else we'll miss dinner. I want to grab a shower, so I'll meet you down there ok?" I gave her a quizzical look, but she got up and started gathering her things for the shower.

"Um, yeah ok, yo. I'll see you at dinner. And Wanda?" I asked as my hand reached out to take hers again. This stopped her movements and made her face me, and I closed the distance between us before I could change my mind. My lips brushed hers gently and I let my hand release hers so it could slide up her forearm then around her waist. Her first reaction was to stiffen everything and I could tell she was fighting the initial reaction of pushing me away. Within seconds though, that thawed and the relaxed into my hold. Both her arms went behind my neck, closing any space that had existed between us. I could feel her fingers from one hand run through my hair, and shivers erupted down my spine to scatter across my flesh. My blood was pounding, roaring in my ears. The now-familiar sensation of my thoughts fogging up and my heart trying to beat its way out of my chest were overwhelmed by the clawing urge to lose myself in her. The richly spiced perfume that was her natural scent assaulted my senses again, but before I could get totally lost the door swung in as Tabby entered. She stopped dead as Wanda pulled away from me, blushing a bright red to rival my own green fire that was rushing across my face.

"Oh. Didn't mean to interrupt or anything…" Tabby said as she started backing up.

"No, no don't worry 'bout it, yo. I was just leaving." Before Tabby could have any more time to jump on the situation, I forced my brain to start working again just well enough to remember how to walk. Somehow I managed to fight my way out of the fog that proximity to Wanda always surrounded my mind in and find my room. Once there, I cleaned up the grime from the danger room, then headed down to dinner. Wanda and Tabby walked in only a few seconds after me, and slowly the others trickled in as well. Wanda took her seat on my right, Rogue on my left, and we went about our usual business of ignoring everyone else. Within the last two weeks this had become customary for us. It was easier this way, to not start any unpleasantness.

This time though, dinner was mostly quiet. I guess people were still getting over the shock of what had happened in the danger room today. Because of this, dinner passed all too quickly and soon enough all of us were sitting on the giant stair case in the main entryway, waiting for Logan to come talk to us about something. We didn't have to wait long. As he approached most students stiffened up automatically. I simply slid my hand into Wanda's, and she gave it a gentle squeeze in return.

"Well," he said as he came to stand in front of us. "Today was eventful. But more importantly, I saw the first steps of teamwork. You did great work there, near the end. I'd like to focus on that a lot more than we have been. In order to do that, I've set up a little trip that will ensure that you all start thinking like a team instead of individuals." Murmurs ran through the other students, mostly of apprehension. It was well-known that when Logan sent students on a 'mission' like this, it was never pleasant. He ignored the mumbles and continued. "Tomorrow morning, every single one of you is to report right here at 6 am." The mutters grew into groans, to which Wolverine put his hand up. "I'm not finished. You're to be right here at 6 am, with supplies that would last you a week in the wilderness. That means _one _bag of _less than _twenty pounds." As he emphasized this last part, his eyes narrowed in on Kitty, who blushed. "Any more than that will just weigh you down, and slow you down. One week _should _be enough to get the idea of a team drilled into your head, but the time is really up to you. That, and we could really use the time to fix up the danger room so it will be ready for you when you get back." More groans erupted from those around us, which Logan also ignored. "Now, get off to sleep. You're going to need it. Tomorrow, 6 am, here, backs packed and ready to go." He gave one last nod to us before turning around to leave us. As soon as he did it felt like everyone around us exploded. Wanda didn't stay to take part in it, instead she rushed after Wolverine.

"Logan?" I heard her ask as I trailed after her. He turned to look over his shoulder, and raised an eyebrow when he saw it was Wanda. This made him stop and turn around, but he crossed his arms over his chest as he looked down at her.

"Yeah?" he asked her in a tone that implied he was not open to whining or begging not to go on this mission.

"This trip…it's going to take place outside of the mansion?" she asked. Oh. Now I knew where she was going with this. Magneto had agreed not to touch her as long as she stayed with the professor, who would obviously be staying in the institute and not be out with us in the field. This would be a prime time for Magneto to launch any type of attack he had against her. Once Wolverine realized she wasn't complaining about this mission, he relaxed a bit.

"You don't have to worry about Magneto where you're going. It's a place he doesn't even know about, far from here and basically undetectable thanks to the work Charles has put into making it seem invisible. You'll be safe from him there, so you don't have to worry about that." Wanda let out a relieved exhale and nodded.

"Thank you," she told him and turned to leave.

"Wanda," Logan said, stopping her. She looked back at him with a question on her face. For a second he looked uncomfortable, but then he stepped closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder. In a lower voice he continued. "It's a brave thing you've done, kid. I'll admit I didn't think you had it in you to last a day here. You proved me wrong. Now I'm rootin' for you. Don't make me regret that." The way he said it, I wasn't sure if it was a compliment or a threat. He gave her another nod, then turned around an continued walking away.

"What was that 'bout?" I asked her.

"I really have no idea," she admitted. We watched him leave, then turned and headed for our own rooms.

"You got the same bad feelin' 'bout this that I do?" I asked her.

"Yup," she said with a curt nod. Being trapped alone with the x-men, off the grid and out of reach of civilization had so much stink on it that it made Blob look innocent. We both sighed in unison and she turned to face me as we reached the point where we had to part ways. "See you in the morning?" she asked, and I nodded.

"Try 'n get some rest, will ya?" She only nodded, and I took her hand in mine once more. I kissed the back of it, then stole a quick kiss from her lips before smiling and heading off to my room. She smiled back at me, but her heart wasn't in it. I could tell that she was worried sick. Hell, she had every reason to be. Who knew what this trip would bring?


	13. Chapter 13

6 am came way too early, and I wasn't the only one who felt this way. By some miracle, which in truth was probably the united fear of Logan being the one to come get us out of bed, we all showed up on time in the entry way with our bags. We were all loaded into the x-jet, where some of us, myself included, promptly passed out again. I didn't wake up again until the jet was landed an at least half of the students had already deplaned.

"Toad," I heard a soft voice whisper in my ear. "Toad, wake up. We gotta go." My eyes slowly cracked open to see Wanda standing over me.

"'M-up, I'm up," I mumbled and dragged myself to my feet. Who got up this early anyways? It's just not right. When we all were gathered around Logan he started debriefing us. We were to move together as one unit, we were to stay together at all time, we were to do some other stuff, but I must have mentally checked out because I don't remember hearing the rest. Finally right before he left, Wolverine told us that the only way we would get back to the mansion was if we convinced him thoroughly that we were, indeed, a united group. He gave a wicked smile to us as the door to the jet stated to close.

"No matter what happens, you're on your own out here. I won't be flying in to save your sorry asses from anything you might…_encounter_. The only way you're getting home is together, or not at all. 'N I can smell bullshit from miles away, so don't think that will work either. You start as of now. Good luck." And just like that, he was gone. The jet took off and we were all standing there looking at one another.

"What did he mean by stuff we would '_encounter'_?" asked Bobby.

"Ah dunno, but ah don' like the sound of that," drawled Rogue.

"Like, whatever, I don't care right now. I'm setting my tent up, and going back to sleep." There were mumbles of agreement. I didn't see any problem with that, so I joined in with the ones who were starting to make camp.

"Guys, I don't think that's what Logan had in mind," Jean was telling us.

"Well you'd be the only one who would know, so let the rest of us assume what we want," said Jubilee. Scott was about to say something to her when he was silenced by a gigantic roar not far to our right.

"What was that?" asked a terrified-sounding Amara.

"You think is was Beast?" asked Bobby.

"It didn't _sound_ like Dr. McCoc," ventured Wolfsbane. The roar ripped through the crisp morning air again, only this time much closer.

"Well I'm not stickin' around ta find out, yo," I told them. I grabbed my bag and Wanda's hand and started heading in the opposite direction. Several others started to follow me.

"Ok, I agree that we should move out, but we don't even know where we are, how do we know that we're going in the right direction?" asked Scott, which brought us to a stop. He sighed and looked at all of us. "Look, we know Logan's objective; we need to work as a team. The sooner we do that, the sooner we go home. So let's start acting like one. Jean, you and Bobby get as high as you can and try to direct us to the nearest body of water. Bobby, take Jubilee with you so that you can signal us if you find something. The rest of us can fan out here and wait for their signal. If anything comes at us, we can work out how to take it on, just like we would in the danger room. Ok?" he asked. I didn't see a problem with the plan as it was, and apparently no one else did either. Jean took off in one direction while Bobby and Jubilee went the other way. We formed a circle to wait for them, and whatever was coming our way. We didn't have to wait long. Within five minutes, Jubilee's fireworks could be seen off in the distance. "Ok, now stay together as a group. Nightcrawler, you take the trees and watch out backs to make sure nothing is stalking us. Wolfsbane, keep your nose to the wind to let us know if something's ahead of us." In an instant she transformed into a wolf and she took the lead.

"Wow, working like this, we'll get home in no time," Amara said cheerily. If only it had been that easy.

This first day went as fine as could be. Scott continued to conduct us, and we let him simply because no one had any better ideas and we all just wanted to go home. He and Jean took lead on almost everything, and with them to guide us we got through the next two days with only few mishaps. Wolfsbane got a stick jammed into her front paw, thus wouldn't shift back to wolf form because she didn't want to be stepping on it any more. Rogue accidentally brushed Sunspot when they were attempting to make food, and he was convinced she did it on purpose so he refused to talk to her for the remainder of the trip. Tabby got into a fight with Kitty over Wanda and I being part of the group which almost ended with a fight before Scott stepped in and gave them separate chores to focus on. By day four, everyone's nerves were friend and we all were just about ready to kill one another. That's when the snow storm hit.

It was bright and sunny noon one second, and the next ice was falling from the sky which forced us out of the clearing we had set up camp in with our gear hastily stowed. Scott tried to get another perimeter out so that we could see where to go, but no one could even see a foot in front of their own face, let alone vast distances. He resigned to go towards the direction he had thought Jean had seen a cliff side earlier, which might result in a cave of some kind. Within minutes we were all frozen solid and totally miserable with our trek through the mounting snow.

"Scott, are you sure it was this way?" Amara asked.

"Yes, I'm sure. We just haven't gone far enough yet," he replied.

"What if we're going the wrong way?" Tabby asked him.

"We're not. Just keep moving," he assured her. Conversations like this continued until I could tell that Scott was at his wit's end. "Look, I know what I'm doing, ok? You just have to trust me!" he finally yelled.

"And why exactly would we do that, when it was you who ran Multiple through the poison ivy path?" asked Wanda acidly. Uh oh. Wanda and I had mostly been keeping our silence since the fight between Kitty and Tabby. It was clear no one wanted our input, and we especially didn't want to be heard when we were countering anyone else of the original x-man team. Wanda blatantly challenging Scott like this was risky. He turned to look at her with a frown on his face.

"Look, that was a small mishap that we got cleaned up right away. It isn't even effecting him anymore, is it Jamie?" he asked.

"I…I can't really feel my arms anymore…so no," Jamie replied. Cyclops sighed and continued walking, trying to tell Wanda off as he did so, which meant he didn't see his last step until it was too late. He stepped right off the edge of what we now realized was a cliff.

"Scott!" cried Jean and threw her hands out, catching him in mid-air and bringing him back onto solid ground.

"Whoa. Thanks Jean," he said in a shaky voice. "Well, looks like we found that cliff. We have to be on the other side of it, the lower side. That means this is just a short ravine with probably a cave on the other side."

"Probably?" Wanda asked him. He ignored her.

"If we can make a way across here, it shouldn't be far before we can find some kind of shelter from this storm. Jean, can you take us across?" he asked. She looked doubtful.

"I don't know how far it is. And even if I did, I couldn't take everyone, it's too much." Scott nodded his understanding.

"Ok, Bobby. Can you make an ice bridge to the other side, and tell us how far it is?" he asked. Bobby nodded and took off.

"It's not far!" he called from somewhere in the snow. "I can make a bridge for people to cross," he offered, and Scott told him to do it. Seconds later the bridge was made, and Scott was attempting to lead all of us across it. I heard the first crack.

"Uh oh," I said and froze where I was.

"What? What is it?" Wanda asked.

"The bridge isn't gonna hold all of us," I said which had those closest to me turning to look at me in alarm.

"Wadda you mean it won't hold us?" Tabby asked. That's when the cracks became loud enough for all of them to hear. Scott stopped us all, which made the cracking stop, but we were now only a quarter across the bridge and stuck.

"I think if we send one person over at a time, the bridge will hold. It will just be slower going, but it will still be ok. Wait until the person in front of you tells you that they're on the other side before starting to move again."

"That's convenient," Wanda remarked. She and I were in the back, and Scott was at the front. Again, he ignored her. His plan seemed to be working fine as he and all the others slowly made it to safety. Finally it was just Wanda and I, with Wanda up next. "You think they'll leave us?" she asked me quietly.

"Na. Rogue, Tabby, Amara and Jubilee're over there. Plus, Logan would kill 'em if they did, 'n they know it." She nodded her head at my logic, but still seemed skeptical. "Still, you should hurry." She started her first steps slowly, trying to keep her footing and her balance while fighting the wind and the snow. She was going great, and almost out of sight when it happened. Had my eyes not been totally trained on her, straining to watch her every move, I would have missed it and believed like everyone else did. When her left foot was still a solid inch and a half from touching the bridge with her next step, it skated off the edge which had Wanda thrown off balance. For a second she teetered, then she plummeted off the side. "Wanda!" I shouted, and before I could think about it I launched myself after her. With the extra push I gave myself from the bridge I was able to collide with her and wrap my arms around her, but it also shattered the ice bridge which left as falling with nothing to reach out to grab.

I thought we were goners for good, but then Wanda's hands were glowing blue and she pulled both her hands up above her head. This caused us to slow down in our fall, but we didn't stop completely. Out of nowhere, an idea hit me. If she could manipulate the entire danger room without looking at it, why not the cliffside?

"Pull out a shelf from the cliff to land on!" I told her. She didn't stop to think about it or tell me she couldn't do it. For a second her hands glowed blue. Like lightning a blue comet-looking hex shot out to our right, where the cliffside had been, and two seconds later we landed hard on something solid. I felt the air rush out of my lungs and knew I would be bruised, but we were alive. "You ok?" I asked her as she stood up, then helped me up.

"Yeah," she said as she winced. I knew she had to be bruised as well, even though I did my best to cushion her fall. "I'll live." We both looked up the way we had come, but all we could see was thick ass snow continuing to cascade down around us.

"There's no way we're getting' back up. Not right now any way," I told her and she agreed. "Think you could make some kinds dent in the rock we could hide in 'til this clears up?" I asked. She turned to look at the rock we were standing on, and the cliff it was jutting out of. We were only about three yards from it, so we made our way there. She put her hands up against it, feeling the texture of it.

"I'll try," she said with a shrug. Her hands started glowing blue with hex magic, and she pushed her hands into the rock as hard as she could. The first attempt made the rock dent in, and each one after that made it bend farther and farther in until eventually we had a hole deep enough in to shelter us from the weather.

"Wow, I gotta say, I'm impressed," I told her as we walked in and I looked around. It was big enough that I didn't even feel claustrophobic in it.

" Me too," she admitted to me with a small smile. She shivered then, and I moved close to her to rub my hands on her arm in an attempt to keep her warm.

"How long do you think it'll last?" I asked her, meaning the snow. She shrugged and sat down, bringing me with her.

"Long enough for us to get comfortable. Even after it's gone, the others still don't know what happened to us." I was quiet for a minute, remembering what I had seen.

"Wanda, what _did _happen?" I asked her. My tone implied that I knew she hadn't fallen my accident. She looked at me in surprise.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean, I know you didn't fall on accident. Your foot never touched the bridge. It was a good inch 'n a half off. What happened?" I asked again.

"How do you know that? It was way too snowy for you to see that clearly." I shrugged again.

"Let's jus' say that I'm really _really_ good at judging distances." I smirked at her. "How else d'ya think I can be so acrobatic? I don't guess when I go swinging or jumping around. I can see exactly where everything is." Wanda watched me for a minute then shook her head.

"Any more surprises you want to tell me about? We definitely have the time."

"Uh, well. I guess I have pretty good senses. Well, some of 'em. I can't see any better 'n you can. But my sense of smell is mutantly enhanced. 'N probably my hearing too." I shrugged when she gave me a strange look. "What? So what if I didn't tell the Brotherhood everything. Who says they need to know everything?" Finally she let out a quiet laugh and shook her head.

"You really are a something else, Toad. There's so much more to you than I could have ever imagined." I blushed at her compliment and brought her closer to me.

"You're avoiding my original question, yo," I pointed out. "What happened to you, on the bridge?" She furrowed her brow for a few minutes.

"My only guess doesn't make sense," she told me. I assumed that meant she and I came to the same conclusion.

"I thought Jean had told us she had chosen to 'reserve judgment' or some shit like that," I said bitterly.

"I guess we just don't fit into her perfect idea of what an x-man should really be." She paused and laid her head on my chest just beneath my chin. "You know no one will believe us," she remarked.

"I know," I told her quietly. Even if we went to the professor with this, who would he believe? The new recruits that used to be 'evil', one of which was the daughter of his main adversary, or the do-gooder Jean Grey who had always been his lap dog and the perfect student? I didn't have to be a mathematician to know that it wouldn't turn out great. Wanda sighed, and I gave her a gentle embrace. "We'll figure something out," I told her. I looked out at the mouth of the cave, watching the snow as the fell. I may have sounded like I had an answer, but what would happen, really? Would the others move on without us? Would they assume we were dead? And did Jean really have the killer instinct we thought she did? Eventually exhaustion caught up with me and I had to put these questions aside and allow myself to drift off to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Adult chapter. Skip ahead if you're squeamish about these things.

"Toad, we're idiots." Wanda's voice was once again the thing that woke me up, only this time it was more amused than reserved.

"Hm?" I mumbled brilliantly as I blinked myself into consciousness. "Whahum? Whaddya mean?" Slowly I brought myself fully around with a yawn and a stretch before taking in my surroundings. We were still in the cave, but it was dusk and the snow had stopped. Wanda was standing at the mouth of the cave looking out, then turned to face me.

"Come look," she told me. Groggily I stood and made my way over to her to looked out. At first I didn't see it, but when I did I smacked myself in the head.

"Really, yo?" I asked rhetorically. Wanda had a smile of some kind on her face as she stepped out of our cave and landed the exact three feet and four inches it took to get to the ground. "Wow, I feel dumb," I said as I followed her out into the setting sunlight.

"I wonder if it's still the same day, or if we slept through 'til the next one," she mused as she watched the sunset.

"Well, either way I'm starving." She nodded her agreement with me and started looking around. Five yards from us was a stream that cut through the ravine that we had fallen down, which was good news for us. Luckily we had been x-men just long enough for Wolverine to teach us how to feed ourselves in an environment like this. We parted ways to use our knowledge, but always stayed within sight. It wasn't long before we had what we were after. "Remind me to thank Logan when we get back," I told Wanda as I brought back all the edible plants I could find.

"Right after I get done thanking him," she told me as she held up two fish.

"You're such a badass," I told her with a grin. "You think they're lookin' for us?" I asked as we finished our Logan-taught meal. Wanda looked up again at the distance we had fallen and the edge of the cliff that marked where the others had been the last time we had seen them.

"Dunno," she said with a shrug. Just then a violent shiver shook through her and her eyes pulled up towards the sky that was out passed the end of the canyon. "You feel that?" she asked with an excitement that I had never seen in her before.

"Feel what?" I asked as I looked up towards the sky line that was barely lit.

"A storm's coming," she told me. There was something in her voice that made me tilt my head at her. It was like telling a kid there was a candy shop just at the end of the canyon, only I didn't see anything special about a storm.

"Like a storm, or like a Storm-storm," I asked, wondering if the African woman was up to something. Wanda took my hand and started dragging me out to where the forest started, leaving the safety of our shelter behind.

"I don't know. I don't care. I just love storms." There was a new light in her eyes, a light of pure joy, and she seemed to have gained new energy.

"Why?" I asked her. We had come to a stop in the middle of the forest just as the first clouds began to frost themselves over the last of the pink and orange beams in the sky.

"I don't know. I always have. There's just something about a good storm…it's beautiful. They way it can wreak such destruction on those it chooses to, but gives so much that's necessary to live at the same time." She seemed breathless just talking about it.

"Huh," I said in a tone like I had figured something out. She turned to look at me, her face asking what I was thinking. "Well, your magic is chaos-based, right?" I asked and she tilted her head.

"Well, yes, but I don't see what that has to do with anything," she admitted.

"Well, what bigger form of chaos is there, than a storm? I mean it's like you said, yo. It causes destruction and at the same time brings life. No one can stop it or even really predict when it will hit or where. They're totally out of control of anyone but themselves. No one tells a storm what to do, where to go, anything like that….ok, well of course there's Storm, but I mean aside from her. People think twice 'bout 'em; people respect 'n even fear 'em. No one can manipulate a storm. It's this giant force of energy, neither good or bad, even though it does both, that doesn't take shit from anyone. Not even Magneto could take on a lightning bolt." Wanda watched me for a long time, long enough to make me feel like I had said something wrong. "What?" I asked her.

"You know, you can be pretty smart," she told me. I grinned at her.

"Yeah, but don't go tellin' anyone else that. They'll think you hit your head a little too hard with that fall." Wanda laughed, and with it came the first clap of thunder. Once more her eyes were pulled to the sky which was now almost totally black, and not from the sun setting. Thunder clouds had rolled in and already rain droplets the size of marbles were pelting down around us. "You sure you wanna stay out here, yo?" I asked apprehensively.

"Of course I do!" she replied blissfully. She tilted her face up and closed her eyes, letting the water fall freely onto her. The next bolt of lightning seemed to tear the sky apart, because that's when the downpour started streaming from the heavens. Not even seconds later we were both soaked from head to foot, but this didn't bother Wanda one bit. In fact, it was like she had transformed into a different person entirely. The thunder was so loud it shook my rib cage, and each time it sounded she seemed to lose a part of herself until she looked to be something I thought I'd never see her become; free.

Her arms we flung out to either side of her as she whirled this way and that, reveling in the throes of the storm, even laughing outright. It was then that I realized that for right now, right here in this moment, in this forest hidden from view of all, in a storm that blotted out reality, she was what she so yearned to be. For this one moment, she was every bit the free woman she longed for. I was content to watch her from under the bough of the nearest tree, not that it did me any good in keeping dry, but I didn't care. Seeing this new side to Wanda astounded me.

About then is when she turned to face me, and something ignited in the two of us just as easily as if lightning had struck us both. The rain poured over her, but her eyes were a light all by their own. There was something between us then, a pulling, clawing _urge_ that couldn't be fought, even if I had wanted to. Her eyes met mine, and lightning struck somewhere behind her which lit us both up for an instant. She held her hand out to me, but I was already moving towards her. Her beauty and the tempest overthrew me, setting fire to the passions that already burned deep within. My lips crashed against hers, and all at once my senses were drowning in her. I could feel the cold fire that was her touch as she took my face in her hands and I wrapped my arms around her. I could smell that familiar, tantalizing spicy-sweet scent as it swarmed through me, bombarding my senses, threatening to overtake me. Breathing seemed impossible with my lungs engulfed in flames as they were, but things like that didn't matter anymore. Mortal necessities such as air seemed inconsequential, as if we were above them. Our hearts raced in unison, seeming to pound louder than the thunder that was no longer above us, but around is; _in _us.

So lost in her that I was, I didn't even notice that she had dragged not only my shirt off but hers as well. Something was bothering in the back of my head, something was buzzing there unpleasantly, but it was something from a reality which we were no longer a part of. For one moment, and one moment only, I pulled away from our met desperation to look into her eyes. The rain poured down around us, dripping off of my arm that I was using to push one of her wrists up against a tree with and onto her neck. I met her eyes and what I saw there made even the annoyance of the buzzing disappear entirely.

"Todd," she breathed. There was a craving unlike any I had ever seen, and I was directed solely at me. It wasn't just because I was here, with her in this sacred moment, but it was me that she wanted. That was more than enough for me.

"Wanda," I answered back. Once more I let my mouth find hers, and I surrendered everything.

It was unimaginable. Her powers were linked to what she was feeling, which meant they ran rampantly and neither of us cared. Part of my mind found it curious that when her nails gouged deep wounds in my back somehow her magic healed them, but that part of my mind logged it for later because it knew I wasn't listening. Once when I had her pinned against a tree, it obliterated into pieces. When my mouth lefts hers for but a moment in exchange for her neck, she bit so deeply into my shoulder it drew blood, yet I didn't feel the pain; it was a different feeling that was entirely alien to me. Hex magic danced all around us, and my shoulder looked like it had never been touched by the time I looked at it. Every so often I would feel her power sift not only over me, but _through_ me, bringing with it all of Wanda's feelings and emotions. Just as entirely as I was all hers, she was all mine. It was more than just our bodies that melted together, something else between us was bonded, forged with each strike of lightning and solidified with every boom of thunder.

When we were at last returned to the world, the storm had eased down into a trickle that fell lightly through the leaves of the forest around us. The thunder still rumbled, but it was far off in the distance and rolling farther away every second. The grass beneath us felt like a water bed, so flooded it had become from the torrential cloudburst. She lay flat on her back while I was on my side leaning over her. Remnants of a different world, our different reality of freedom, still echoed around us. She smiled up at me and put a hand to my face. Gently I leaned down to brush her lips in a soft shadow of the previous frenzy. No words were exchanged; none were needed. I trailed my finger tips up and down her velvet soft skin, but my eyes never left hers. We could have stayed like that for an eternity if we had been allowed to.

"You really are something else, Todd Tolansky," Wanda told me with a smirk. It wasn't the play on her earlier statement that got me. It was my name. She had used my real name. Not Toad, or anything else. My real, full name. For some reason, that hit home with me. Before I could reply or do anything else, we were interrupted.

"I'd say," came an amused accent that was far too familiar for me not to place. Just like that, everything magical and personal we had between us shattered as we came plummeting back into the real world. Wanda shot up, pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms around her chest in an effort to conceal at least a bit of herself to this new intruder.

"Gambit!" she yelled in loathing.


	15. Chapter 15

God dammit Gambit, you motherfucker!" Wanda hissed at him as she used a free hand to jerk a wall of blue hex magic to act as a visual shield between us and him.

"Hey, dat was one time, 'n she wasn't even yours," Gambit replied in a teasing tone accompanied by a chuckle. "Quite da show, though. I'll admit." Wanda was seething by now, but there was something else in her eyes. She was thinking the same thing I was: wasn't this place supposed to be uncharted? Off the map and definitely hidden from Magneto, and thus his henchmen? I had thought she'd be safe here, and yet here was Magneto's calling card.

"You better be here lookin' for Rogue," I said testily. "Magneto can't touch her." Wanda and I slipped on the last articles of clothing, all of which were still sopping wet, then she lowered her shield. She didn't give the Cajun even a second to draw a breath before she threw him up against the nearest tree with a hex, using another one to get a tree branch to wrap around him.

"I'm sensin' some hostility here," Gambit remarked dryly. "I didn't tink dat you'd be happy ta see me, but I don't need ya attackin' me. If I had come here for dat, I woulda done it while you were…preoccupied."" Wanda snarled at him and made the tree clench him tighter.

"Why couldn't you just _leave me alone_?" she hissed at him.

"In all fairness, we have left you alone for de most part," he reasoned with her.

"They why're you here?" I asked him. "How did you even know where we were?"

"I'd be more 'n happy ta answer all of your questions, but not 'til you put me down."

"I could _rip_ the answers out of you," Wanda threatened darkly. I put my hand on her shoulder. For a moment it felt like she was going to shake me off, but then she signed and dropped her hands. This action released Gambit who fell from the tree to the ground in a crouch, then straightened. "Why are you here?" she demanded of him. He crossed his arms as he watched her and answered her slowly.

"Magneto wanted to make sure you were keepin' good on your end of da deal. He wanted ta make sure you weren't still huntin' him."

"I'm with the x-men, aren't I? How did you find me?" she asked harshly.

"We've been keepin' tabs on you, ta make sure you don't go double crossin' anyone. When you disappeared off of da radar, I got sent lookin' for ya, and I'm ta serve as a reminder ta watch your place." Wanda glowered at him as blue fire rippled around her hands in anger.

"My 'place' is wherever I decide to be," she growled, and he only shrugged. "So now that you've come and met with me, what is it exactly that you're going to tell Magneto?" she asked in a dangerous voice. Gambit smirked at her.

"'S far as I'm concerned, you're no longer a threat to us. It seems you've been tamed by….usual means, but tamed nonetheless." He turned his red-tinted eyes on me and bobbed his head in a type of saluting gesture. "I congratulate you on your success with de Witch; none of us thought you could do it. You did Magneto a great service." Suddenly Wanda's usually blue hex-fire blazed a brilliant crimson. She used her right hand to slash the air from her right to left, throwing Gambit violently into a tree so that he was promptly knocked unconscious and slid down the trunk to lay in a heap at the bottom. For a split second I wondered if she'd killed him, but I was able to pick up his heartbeat and shrugged it off. I could see Wanda's shoulder shaking out of pure hatred and anger, so I didn't dare say one word. It only took a few moments before it built up so much that she snapped. Her power lashed out, blowing a crater the size of a small town in the ground around her, flattening every tree and charring ever blade of grass to a deep black. I was thrown several feet from her, but miraculously unharmed.

"Who the HELL does he think he is!" she screamed. I had to wait for my vision to clear, and when it did I saw Wanda on her knees at the center of all the burned destruction. Gingerly I got up, testing to see if anything was hurt, but as I had originally assumed I was fine. Once I was over this discovery I went to her and crouched down next to her. She had her eyes squeezed shut, but it didn't stop the crystal tears she was fighting so hard against from trickling down her face.

"Wanda," I said softly and moved to pull her into my arms. She fought me and pulled away to stand instead, angrily wiping her cheeks as she did so.

"No," she said in a dark voice. "Not this time. I won't back down this time. He's been manipulating me my entire life. I'm done. I'm done with him, I'm done with his games, and it's going to end. Now." She finally turned to face me. There was no fear there now, no resignation, no hesitation. Only pure determination and untainted loathing. "It's always felt like I was on the losing side of this war. He thinks that I'm staying down, but I'm not giving up any more." She let a wicked sneer cross her face and she looked up at the night sky. "Let him see how 'tame' I've become."

* * *

><p>I wasn't going to let the man that called himself my father get away with his shit any longer. Too long people had feared him too much to stand up to him. I had my doubts, sure. He was a stronger mutant than I was, and he had more people to back him up, but I wouldn't let my fears control me anymore. No matter what happened, this ended tonight. I tried to make Todd stay in that forest, stay safe with the x-men, but no matter what I said he insisted on coming with me. I told him that from then on out, it wasn't going to be pretty. He must have seen it in my eyes. I knew he was scared, but still he wouldn't listen to any attempt to get him to stay. Honestly, I was glad to have him with me. At least I would have one person by my side when I faced Magneto.<p>

When Gambit finally was brought around, I didn't waste any time on pleasantries. I used my hexes to pull information from his mind and into mine, a trick I had been working on for a while. The result put Gambit back out, and probably would have some lasting effects, but I was passed caring about him or anyone else. I was on the track I had always wanted to follow, and nothing would stand in my way.

With Magneto's location in my mind, as well as the transportation that Gambit had used to get to this barren stretch of land, Todd and I were speeding back towards Magneto's lair in a metal orb in no time. I knew it would be a long way there, so we both settled down to wait. I felt Todd's hand reach out and take mine, which made me realize how focused I felt. Everything was numb for me. I didn't feel fear, panic or even anger. I knew exactly what I was doing, and with that came a clarity of mind that I had never felt before.

"Wanda," Todd said quietly. I met his golden eyes as he searched mine. He was worried, but not for himself. That thawed me the slightest bit. I squeezed his hand and offered him a smile.

"It'll be alright," I told him.

"Look, I'm not doubtin' you. I know that you really can do whatever you put your mind to. But…goin' after Magneto like this is like cornering a rabid bear. Most people don't have that very high on their to-do list," he remarked.

"I know," I told him somberly and looked away. "That's _why_ I'm doing this. Not because I'm sure I'll win, but because it's what needs to be done." I felt his hand brush my cheek, which once more brought my attention to him. I put my cheek into his open palm, and he brushed my face with his thumb.

"It's jus'….I don't know what I would do, if I ever lost you. I don't think I could handle that," he confessed to me.

"Hopefully, you won't have to," I remarked. I put my hand over his and kissed the inside of his palm before crossing the distance between us and pushing my lips to his. That feeling that only he gave me fluttered inside my chest. Usually I would push it back down, but this was one of the few times I let it flourish. He felt the change in me, I know because of the way he shifted. He pulled me to him, and I let him. Eventually I pulled away from him, but didn't make eye contact. I knew what I would see there, and I didn't want to address it. Neither of us wanted to admit how much this felt like a goodbye. I let myself lean against him, laying my head on his chest as he tucked his chin over me and wrapped his arms around me. I let one of my hands find his and laced our fingers together.

"Wanda?" he said after a long stretch of foreboding silence.

"Hm?" I answered him.

"Can you promise me somethin'?" he asked. Had it come from anyone else, my answer would have been no. I didn't trust people with open-ended promises. They might ask for something I wasn't willing to give. But for Todd….he was the one that had held faith for me from the beginning, and never had even a moment of doubt. He had held on through all the terrible treatment I had given him and persisted through my never-ending hexes and insults. He had been the one to come to my recue not once, but several times now. He had been the one to open my eyes and heart to a world I had been previously blind to. He had even switched teams with me, to take sides with the x-men. I owed him everything. Even more than that…I trusted him.

"Of course," I replied. "What is it?"

"I need you ta promise me that no matter what happens, you'll do everything in your power ta walk outta this." Out of everything he could have asked me for, I wasn't expecting that.

"I'll do my best to ensure we _both_ get out of this," I told him. He nodded his acceptance and remained quiet for the rest of the ride. What felt like both the longest and shortest period of my life ended with a gentle thump as the metal orb made its landing. From the memories I ripped out of Gambit, I knew that we would be in a solid metal vessel that hovered far above the ground, hiding in the clouds. The orb slowly opened form the top, and we stepped out into a dimly lit room.

"Wanda," came a voice that had haunted innumerable nightmares of mine. It made my blood run cold and stirred up the old anger that had become a giant part of who I was. My eyes narrowed and I turned around.

"Father." I spat the sarcastic term out like the poison it was to me. I clenched my fists as every single nerve in my body started buzzing. I was as ready as I'd ever be for him, and for once the odds were slightly in my favor; Gambit was left behind with the x-men. That left him one Acolyte short.

"What are you doing here?" he asked. There was something in his voice, but I couldn't place it.

"What should have been done a long time ago," I growled. Slowly I eased my power out to form a glowing blue aura around me,, and it was from that light that I realized what was in Magneto's voice, and now eyes: Fear. He was afraid of me. That idea empowered me more than anything else could have. I felt a sneer pull its way across my lips and Iraised my hands. Fire shot out from somewhere behind me, but I didn't have to worry about that because it was quickly quenched. Todd must have heard Pyro coming and done something to intercept him. I didn't dwell on it long, instead I cut off my attention to everything else but the man in front of me. This was my fight, my war to finish, and my only concern.

Without warning a metal sheet wrapped itself around me, trying to smother me in a cold metallic cocoon. I took a deep inhale then pushed my hands out to either side of me, shooting the sheet in two opposite directions which allowed me to continue to walk towards Magneto.

"Wanda, think about what you're doing," he tried, but I detected the waiver in his tone.

"Oh, I have," I assured him. "I've thought about this every single day since you abandoned me in that institution. I've waited a long time for this." Before I could mount any of my own attacks against him, something bellowed behind me. I turned just in time to see a giant metal Piotr charging me, and Todd was already busy trying to tease Sabertooth into focusing on him and not me. "I do _not_ want to play your games!" I shouted. I used one hand to flick blue hex-lights at Colossus. Within seconds his metal skin retracted and he came crashing down a few feet from me, barely breathing as I stole his powers and his breath. I could have killed him, but as Rogue had told me earlier my war wasn't with any one person besides Magneto. More metal was thrown at me from my prey, but I tossed it aside easily with another hex.

"Wanda!" I heard Todd shout. I didn't even look this time, just flicked my hex-lights at Sabertooth which sent him flying into the wall hard enough that he crumpled and made no move to get up again. Whatever Todd had done to Pyro when he first attack had lasted, since it seemed he could no longer manipulate fire. I would have taken him out too, but Magneto had engaged me once again, leaving Todd to take care of John. He picked me up by pulling on the metal in my clothes, but I countered it with a hex that sent him flying end over end. I landed on my feet just as he crashed into the back wall.

"That was for toying with my mind," I hissed. I sent another hex that was now colored purple, I guess because it was tinted with the red of the rage I felt boiling under the calm surface that had been with me since entering the metal orb. This hex wrapped around him as I attempted to pull the very air out of his lungs and make him choke on it. He fought, writhing this way and that, but my hold was strong. "This is for stealing my childhood," I spat. I used my free hand to make an upward movement. This resulted in him moving up and gaining another level of hex magic around him, which inflicted twice as much pain as the previous one. "This is for tainting me, forcing me to become the person I was." With both hands I pushed down which threw him to the ground and held him there. With a tugging motion I brought him to lay before my feet, and I looked down at him feeling utter hate fill me. "You could have done things differently," I told him. My voice shook with loathing. He was shaking as well, but it was from the pain I was filling him with, making him experience with every fiber of his being. "You could have been a father, instead of a monster. You had no reason to leave me the way you did. But in a way, I'm glad you did. I never would have become the person I am today, without your help. It was my hatred for you, my need for revenge against you, that has fueled my every action."

"Wanda, don't," he choked out. "I-I'm sorry." For some reason his apology made me even more livid.

"It's too late for that!" I yelled, but he didn't care. He had only said it to distract me, and it had worked. He moved faster than I thought he could and struck me across the face. I staggered back three steps before falling from the force of the blow, and the surprise of it had ended the hexes I had used to keep him in place. Now he rose and surrounded himself in his own metal shell as I threw hex after hex at him. They all washed off the outside of this new metal like water, and I briefly wondered what he had made it out of. I didn't have too much time to think, because next thing I knew I was being attacked with my own hexes. _No! _I thought. Utter panic filled me. He must have made a new collar in the time I'd been with the x-men. Each tendril of magic he threw at me drained me of my own power, and thus my life-force. I felt myself growing weaker with each passing minute, but there was nothing I could do about it. He was stronger, faster and now had my own magic to use against me. I could barely summon up defense hexes fast enough before he threw the next one. It didn't take long for me to falter just once, and he leapt on the opportunity.

I left my guard down for once second too long between defense hexes, and was blown through a wall with my own magic. My head spun and blood pounded in my ears, but still I forced myself to stand. I was too slow, as he came down at me with yet another attack, laying me flat out and gasping for breath. While I grew weaker with every second, he grew stronger. I made one more attempt to stand, but Magneto lashed out with his hand across my face, which threw me against the wall and left my back to him.

"I was right to have done all I did," he told me coldly. "In the beginning, you were too wild, a menace to not only yourself but everything around you. And while you have grown to control this in the more recent years, you have lost your strength. The great mutant ability that was given to you was wasted on a weak mind. Now I will remedy this for the last time. Once I have all of your power, no one will be able to stop my conquest, not even Charles. It's over Wanda, for you and all else who stand in my way." I wiped blood from the side of my mouth and turned to look up and over my shoulder at him, just in time to watch him make his last strike. I closed my eyes, waiting for the final blow, but what I heard was not what I expected.

"Wanda, no!" Todd's agonized scream filled my ears, forcing my eyes to open. He had propelled himself across the room and was headed straight for Magneto. The master of metal turned and intercepted him by pulling a sheet of metal from the ceiling and slamming it into Todd, forcing him to the ground with a sickening crack. I waited for Todd to move, to get up, but he never did.

"Todd?" I asked weakly. He had to respond to me. He always did. No matter what happened to him, he would always answer if I called him. Still, he didn't move. "Todd!" I called again, louder. He lay perfectly still. Magneto turned back to me with triumph in his eyes.

"Of all the allies, you bring along the most useless of them all," he scorned. I couldn't tear my eyes from the limp body that lay behind my father, and I willed him to move with everything I had in me. It didn't work. A coldness swept through my body, the kind that I had only felt once before in the danger room, when he had been trapped by the machine with no one to help him. It wasn't fury, and it wasn't the coldness of the calm that I had felt before; this was sheer terror at losing him. He didn't deserve this. He didn't belong here, fighting beside me against my enemy. He should have lived a long and happy life. He had been the one source of happiness, the one source of good in my life, the one thing I had ever felt anything for. I had loved him. The coldness spread through my body, then flowed out of my to turn everything around me a bright, blinding sapphire. New energy burst through me, filling my veins with a new cause and new fire. I stood up to look Magneto in the eye, and I saw there a panic that would have been worth it, had it not been for Todd's sacrifice. He had given me everything he could, and now he gave me the strength I needed for this last act.

I spent no time in explaining myself, or anything, to the man before me. He didn't deserve it. Instead I allowed my power to grow and illuminate not only the room, but the entire floating metal craft. Magneto was frozen in his place and his powers stolen as I manipulated the chaos magic to take hold in every portion of his safe haven. When I opened my eyes again, I could see that I was glowing a bright blue not only on the outside, but from the inside as well. I gave Magneto one final look before bringing my hands together and pushing in an outward motion. This caused everything that I had filled with my magic to begin to decay, piece by piece. It looked as if a wind was blowing everything away as if it were made of dust. The man I had once called father let out a strangled cry before dissipating himself into nothingness. I let most of the metal craft dissolve as well before surrounding both myself and Todd's crumpled form with more magic. I made sure that the unconscious and now leaderless Acolytes would end up somewhere safe, then returned my attention to the magic I worked around Todd and I. This protected us long enough for me to get us to solid ground. Once there, I let everything fade and I knelt beside Todd, turning him over so I could look into his face. His eyes were closed, and he wasn't breathing.

"Todd," I called in a soft voice that broke. "Todd!" I felt a lump in my throat and clenched my jaw tightly. Part of me wanted to cave in and wither away, but another stronger part forbade me from doing so. Not until I did everything I could. It wasn't fair, that he had to give his life in order for me to discover the extent of my power. It wasn't fair, for me to have all this chaos based magic, and not be able to do one single act of good with it. I couldn't have all this energy and only destroy things. Then Todd's voice rang in my ears. _"Well, what bigger form of chaos is there, than a storm? It causes destruction and at the same time brings life."_ A storm was chaos based. My magic, my power, was based on chaos witchcraft. It had already proven what kind of destruction it could wreak. Logically, it should be able to bring life as well. If I could take out Magneto, I could bring back the one source of good this world had to offer. I wasn't sure how much I had left, I felt as weak as I ever had, but I pushed that out of my mind and knelt over him. I struggled, but then was able to bring the blinding glow to my hands once more. I didn't give it any restrictions, I didn't limit it in any way. I allowed my power to pour out of me and into him with full force, using only my will to bring his life back to shape it. I felt it drain my power, then tap into my life energy. Still, I did nothing to stop it. I let every last remnant of it trickle out of me and into him. Black ebbed at the edge of my vision, slowly working in to take over everything, but I refused to give in until I had given him all I had. Only when I was sure there was nothing more that I could do did I allow my arms to drop and my body to collapse to the ground beside him.

* * *

><p>I was walking through the mist, looking for something, but I wasn't entirely sure what it was. There was a light up ahead, but the rest of the world around me was dark. I was looking for someone…I couldn't remember who. He was important though, I knew that much. I continued walking, scanning the darkened fog all around me, but I was totally alone. Then I felt a stab to my heart and cried out in pain. It had barely passed before another one hit, then another. The mist around me became thicker and thicker, blotting out the light I had been headed to.<p>

With a giant gasp I inhaled air to my stale lungs and sat up. I was still on the beach where I had landed with Todd, but more than that I didn't know. Before I could regain any more sense of place or memory, something was smothering me.

"Why the fuck did you do that?" he asked as he pressed his lips to mine. Frenzied hands ran over my hair, down my neck, across my shoulders and around my back, as if he were checking that I was all in one piece. He pulled his lips from mine just long enough to look over my body one more time. "Why did you do that?" he demanded again. "You're so stupid Wanda, you're so stupid, you coulda killed yourself! What did you think you were doing?" I coughed again as I brought more air into my lungs and closed my eyes against the splitting headache I had.

"What happened?" I asked in a raspy croak.

"You gave us all quite a scare," said a smooth voice from behind me. Storm stood there, along with most of the other x-men. I couldn't see very well, on the account of Todd still clinging to me and keeping me from moving too much. He put both his hands on either side of my face which forced me to look at him.

"You don't ever do that again, you hear me? Not ever. Or I'll kill you myself, bring you back ta life 'n kill you again. Then I'll put you in a plastic box where you can't ever get into any more trouble." Slowly, memories were coming back to me. I remembered facing Magneto…and…

"Todd," I said in agony as I remember seeing his lifeless body being smashed to the floor. I felt my eyes well up and, even though my body protested greatly, I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him tight. "I thought you were dead," I whispered as I shut my eyes tight against the tears that still streamed through.

"He was," came the voice of the professor and I was reminded that we weren't alone. "You both were." He seemed perplexed by this idea, so I pulled myself together to face him.

"What do you mean?" I asked. His eyes found mine and bore into them before he answered.

"You and Todd were both deceased, as far as we know. First Todd, then as you poured your life into him, you. It was your selfless act that brought him back." That didn't make sense.

"Then how am I alive?" I asked, puzzled. The professor looked up at Storm.

"Aurora gave direct lightning bolts to your heart, which jump started it enough to bring you back to us," he explained. I looked at Storm with wide eyes. I wanted to thank her, but I had no idea how to. Luckily, I was interrupted again by Todd.

"Wanda, what the fuck did you do that for?" he asked me. "I told you, I made you promise, that above all else, you would do your best to live. Killing yourself isn't how that works! Why would you do that?" he still seemed to be in a panic, and was holding my hand so tightly that I thought it would shatter. I turned to look at him, and saw in his eyes everything I had known already, but refused to accept. I put a hand to his face and offered him a small smile.

"Because, Todd, I love you." That stopped everything he was about to say, and the words got stuck in his throat. "I couldn't let you die, I wouldn't allow it. You're worth more than that." We watched each other for a long time before he was able to process what he said.

"So you brought me back from the dead?" he asked incredulously.

"I guess that's what happens, when you love a Witch," I remarked dryly. He grinned wildly at me and kissed me again. I would have been content with just that, but Wolverine had other ideas.

"Enough of that, you'll have time for it later," he said gruffly which broke us apart. I turned to look at him questioningly. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at me. "You coming home with us, or not?" Almost every single one of the x-men, save for the professor, looked at him in surprise.

"Logan, Magneto's gone. So are his plans to take out, well, everyone. Wanda doesn't have ta hide with us anymore," Tabby told him.

"That's not what I asked," he said. He never took his eyes from me. "I asked if she was coming home." I thought it through for a long time. It was clear in my short time there that some of them didn't want me. But that was also the strongest feeling of family I had ever had. I felt taken care of, for the first time in my life. And I couldn't forget the kindness shown to me by not only Logan, Beast and the professor but Tabitha, Rogue, Amara and Jubilee. Then I locked eyes with Jean. I stared at her long and hard, letting her know I knew what she had tried to do to me. For a moment she looked stubborn, but then her gaze softened and she looked away in shame. My gaze wandered again until it for Professor Xavier.

"You know that you have a place among us, Wanda, should you choose it," he told me kindly. There was something in his face, like he knew a playful secret that I didn't. The last face I looked at was Todd's. He squeezed my hand and smiled at me.

"You already know what I'm gonna say," he said quietly. And I did. I knew that no matter what happened he would be there for me. "My home is anywhere you are." I knew I couldn't go back to the Brotherhood, that would be going right back to where I started, only with Mystique. But I also knew that somewhere along the way, I had changed. I didn't want to be on my own anymore. I wanted to be a force of good in the world. Gingerly I tried to stand, but my legs gave out. Todd was still too weak to grab me, but Kitty was there to catch me before I fell. I looked up at her, and she looked at me. For a second I wasn't sure what was going to happen, but then she gave me a shaky smile and helped me stand. That decided it for me. I looked back at Logan and gave him a smile.

"I want to go home," I told him. A part of his mouth lifted in a sort of half smile, and he nodded his approval. Without saying another word he turned and headed back to the x-jet.


End file.
